Force Bond 1: Orphan
by KittandChips
Summary: AU After Owen and Beru are killed by a mysterious stranger, young Luke ends up as an orphan on Coruscant. It's a race against time as Obi-Wan struggles to find Luke before Vader realizes the boy is his son.
1. Nightmare

**Summary**: After Owen and Beru are killed by a mysterious stranger, young Luke ends up as an orphan living on Coruscant. It's a race against time as Obi-Wan struggles to find Luke before Vader realizes the boy is his son.

**Description**: This is an AU, the first of a four part series with Vader and Luke as the two central characters.

**Last Adjusted**: February 23 2008

* * *

**Chapter 1: Nightmare**

* * *

Beru knew there could be only one reason why she found herself awake. There was only _ever_ one reason why anyone was woken prematurely on the Lars' family farm. The name of that reason was Luke Skywalker. Somewhere in the corridor, a muffled thud was sounding at regular intervals. Footsteps, treading softly against the sandy floor of the homestead. _Trying_ to tread softly, at least, but not succeeding.

She smiled to herself. He must be sneaking out for a midnight snack. She'd left a slice of pudding in the cooling unit for precisely that purpose, knowing how hungry young boys could be in the early hours of the morning.

As she turned her head to view the chronometer, she found she had to sit up to see over the snoring body of Owen. Two after midnight - another three hours 'til dawn. Like all farmers, they rose and slept with the twin suns.

Beru was about to roll over and return to her slumber, when the flicker of a shadow caught her eye. She squinted, trying to see through the darkness. It was the wrong shape for Luke - too large for one thing. Perhaps she should go and investigate. The chances of a tusken raider actually breaking through their security fence was very slim, but it wouldn't hurt to check.

She listened carefully for another sound, for any other clue that might hint of an intruder. When none was forthcoming, she turned over, dismissing the shadow as a trick of the light. It was better just ... to go back to ... sleep ...

* * *

Luke looked over his shoulder in terror. There was something coming for him, chasing him! Why couldn't he move? It was five spans away ... two spans away ... screams were echoing around him, hurting his ears, becoming more and more frantic. He desperately struggled against his paralyzed limbs as a large hand reached out, blocking the light -

He sat up quickly, with his heart pounding in his chest. Only a dream, only a dream!

It was eerily silent, save for his rapid breathing.

Until another agonized scream filled Luke's ears.

"Aunt Beru!!"

He jumped out of bed and ran to the window. Across the courtyard, he could see a red, glowing light shimmering in the windows of his aunt and uncle's bedroom. Suddenly, his aunt's screams stopped. A prickly sensation traveled up Luke's spine and around his neck.

_Run, Luke! Hide!_

Luke didn't need any strange voices in his head to tell him twice. He made a dash for the door, and then found himself face down in the dust. He struggled back up, rubbing his leg. He had tripped over his model T-16. He grabbed it and crept out into the courtyard.

He made his way to the garage, and then hid behind an old, broken droid shell. Across the courtyard was the entrance to his guardian's bedroom. He squinted, trying to see. What was that smoking lump by the doorframe? It almost looked like a body ...

Luke didn't have time to dwell on it. A dark, shadowy figure emerged from the homestead, and the red glowing light extended directly from its hand. It was heading straight for him.

Suddenly, it was just like his dream. He was too scared to move! Where were his aunt and uncle? Why didn't they come?

The dark figure wasn't in any hurry. It calmly reduced the distant between itself and Luke, with grim determination. Luke could only stare in wide-eyed terror.

_Run, Luke!_

Luke looked around in confusion. Who had said that? Besides, where was he going to run to? There was only ... the speeder. He could escape in the landspeeder! But the dark shadow was nearly on top of him, and his legs were frozen. He'd never make it! It was too late ...

A blur of motion obscured Luke's view. Something had come flying off the garage roof and was now standing between Luke and the attacker. Luke found his legs weren't as useless as he thought. He ran, jumped into the old landspeeder, and gunned the engine.

He didn't look back.

* * *

The enemy cursed as he heard Luke escape. He made to go after him, but instead met Obi-Wan's lightsaber. One quick feint, and then Obi-Wan brought the blade around in a circle, slicing straight through the attacker's left arm. The now useless appendage flew in one direction, while the attacker's lightsaber clattered away in the other.

A raspy hissing noise emerged from the depths of the black robes, and the attacker stumbled backwards.

"Who are you?!" Obi-Wan demanded, stepping forward with his blade pointed at the attacker's throat. "Why did you kill the Lars?"

The black-robed figure stepped closer, in defiance of Obi-Wan's blade. Obi-Wan had felt the Dark Side many times in his long career as a Jedi Knight, but at that moment, it took all his effort to avoid shifting away. A damp coldness surrounded him, touching his every sense.

A voice responded to his question in a low whisper. "Why do you protect the son of Vader, Obi-Wan?"

Obi-Wan reeled at the words. Luke, not the Lars, was this evil being's target.

A clatter from behind caused Obi-Wan to whirl around in surprise. The attacker's lightsaber flew at him from the desert floor.

Obi-Wan swung his lightsaber in defense, batting the blade away. But even as he turned, he knew the attacker's distraction had succeeded. The black figure flew upwards, performing a gravity-defying leap up to the desert surface. Once at the top, he paused to look down at Obi-Wan, silhouetted against the dark blue sky.

Then he disappeared, to who knew where.

Obi-Wan sighed wearily, and he turned off his lightsaber. He faced the spot where he'd last seen Luke, but there was nothing but a cloud of dust, stirred up by a landspeeder.

He crossed the courtyard and entered Owen and Beru's bedroom. All that remained of the Lars were a few smoking remains.

Obi-Wan had witnessed many senseless murders in his life, but it never lost its horror. Although Owen Lars had never made him feel welcome at the farm, Obi-Wan had always respected the gruff and serious farmer. It took determination to forge a living out here. Determination and a strong spirit.

On that point, he and Beru had been a perfect couple. Beru's nature was a counterpoint to Owen's harsh exterior. She was always the peacemaker, always ready to smile in the face of disagreement. Both had loved Luke as dearly as if he had been their own son.

As he set about the grisly task of giving Luke's former guardians a proper burial, Obi-Wan wondered about the identity of the Lars murderer. A Dark Side user, obviously, but not a Sith. Undoubtedly one of the few Jedi who had managed to survive the purge. Many of those survivors had allowed themselves to become consumed by hatred of Vader and Palpatine, and they had ended up slaves to the Dark Side themselves, long before they had an idea what was slowly consuming their souls.

If this one had gone after Luke it meant Vader's true identity was not as secret as Obi-Wan had previously thought.

As the first rays of sunlight lit the dawn sky, Obi-Wan placed two stones at the head of the Lars' grave. Five graves now stood in a line, representing two generations of the Lars family. Perhaps the last two generations.

But one Skywalker still remained. Obi-Wan turned away from the graves and scanned the desert horizon, shielding his eyes from the suns. There was no sign of Luke or his impending return.

He frowned to himself. The desert was no place for an eleven year old boy. However, without transportation, there wasn't much he could do. Going after him on foot in the heat of the day wasn't a prudent idea.

He made his way down into the homestead, searching for something else he could do to assist Luke. Contacting the authorities at Anchorhead was a start. He didn't trust the Hutts or the Imperials, but there was a civilian search and rescue team that would be only too happy to help.

At any rate, he had to report the Lars' death.

He entered the main kitchen, and his gaze fell on the long-distance communicator immediately. It wasn't hard to miss - it was still smoking. Torn wires trailed from it, spreading halfway down the bench.

The Lars' murderer had certainly made a thorough job. An ironic thought stirred in Obi-Wan's mind ... Anakin could have it fixed before he could say 'Blast!'.

But those days were long gone.

Now there was nothing he could do except wait. Wait and trust in the Force to keep Anakin's son safe.

* * *

Far away, in the lowest part of a rocky valley, a landspeeder sat parked in the shade of a flat, overhanging slab of sediments.

Luke was in the driver's seat, resting his head against his knees. He was still trying to piece together just how he'd ended up out here. The events at the farm all seemed like a shadowy dream. Had it all been a nightmare?

But he sure wasn't dreaming now. He was out here alone, in the middle of nowhere, and he hadn't the slightest idea how to get back home. He didn't even have a comlink to send a distress signal. In fact, his only possessions were the pajamas he was wearing and a model of a T-16.

He jumped as a clattering sound broke the silence. A stone bounced down the cliff, rolling off the rocks until it came to rest on the valley floor. Luke knelt on the edge of the seat and leaned forward to look out from under the overhang. Was there someone up there? Jawas, maybe. Or even a Krayt dragon.

Luke hastily withdrew back out of sight and hunkered down. Shortly afterwards, he heard a series of odd grunting sounds. There was something out there, all right.

He flattened himself against the seats, too scared to move. The grunts were coming closer. It didn't sound like Jawas, nor like a Krayt dragon. It almost sounded like ... Luke began breathing quickly. Tusken Raiders. It had to be.

A loud grunt caused his stomach to lurch. It sounded less than a meter away! Another grunt answered the first - there were at least two. If they saw his speeder, he was dead, no question about it. He could only hope their narrow vision was focused on something in the opposite direction.

Luke held his breath until he could do so no more. He took a slow, shaky breath, trying to force himself to calm down. It was quiet now. Perhaps they had gone.

He waited for another minute, before he slowly lifted his head. There was a trail of footprints through the valley, which hadn't been there a moment ago. They passed within a body's length of his speeder.

He let out another shaky breath. That had been a close one.

Suddenly, his view of the valley was blocked by someone dropping down in front of him. He found himself staring into the barrel of a Tusken rifle.

Luke threw himself back down, and his ears shook with the sound of an explosive bang. He waited to feel some kind of pain, but nothing came. Instead, the sounds continued. Laser blasts intermixed with Tusken screams. Eventually, it all became quiet. Quiet, except for the sound of his heart pounding rapidly in his chest.

Then he heard a sharp, metallic voice. "Did you get them all?"

"Affirmative."

"I'll make a report to base."

Luke sat up in surprise. Tusken bodies lay haphazardly around the speeder. A stormtrooper was walking among them, gathering up their gaffi sticks and rifles.

Luke tried to speak, but he found his throat was dry. He hadn't had anything to drink since leaving the farm. Fearful of being left alone, Luke raised his hand and brought it down on the speeder's horn controls.

The sound caused the stormtrooper to drop the Tusken's weapons and reach for his own blaster. A split second before he fired, he must have registered Luke's non-threatening appearance, and he lowered the weapon.

"Sir, there is a boy down here."

Luke looked up, past the stormtrooper and saw the superior. He was up on the desert surface, on top of a dewback.

"A boy?"

"A human child."

"Bring him back with you."

The stormtrooper whistled, and a dewback mount came lumbering around the corner. The trooper loaded the Tusken's weapons into a side pouch and beckoned Luke over.

"Come on, boy."

Luke hesitated. He didn't want to stay here alone, that was for sure. But he didn't want to leave the landspeeder, either.

The stormtrooper then held out a transparent bottle of water. That made up Luke's mind. He opened the speeder door and ran over, clutching his T-16 model tightly. He drunk eagerly from the bottle, letting the cool water run over his mouth and down his neck.

When he had finished, the trooper lifted him onto the dewback and climbed up behind him. With a loud roar that echoed against the rocky walls, the dewback turned its head and began the journey out of the valley.

Its gait was stable and rhythmic, and the gentle rocking lulled Luke into a drowsy state. He leaned forward, resting against the back of the dewback's head. Its skin felt smooth, despite its rough appearance, and it was pleasantly warm.

He didn't know how long he lay there, flopping gently back and forth, but it seemed like a long, long time. Eventually, it all came to an end. His journey companion gave him a shake, and he sat up to find they were nearing the center of Anchorhead. There were very few people around, and for that, Luke was grateful, given the fact he was wearing his pajamas. It was nearing the hottest part of the day, and most people would be indoors, cooling down with a cold drink.

The odd street-wanderer who remained didn't bother to stare at them, though. Staring at a stormtrooper was asking for trouble.

Their dewback swerved down a side street, obviously knowing the way to the base without having to be guided. They soon arrived at a courtyard, where several other dewbacks rested in a stable, which was really just a tarpaulin thrown over an arrangement of posts.

The stormtrooper lifted Luke to the ground, and then dismounted himself. He stripped the various pouches hanging from the saddle and draped them over Luke like he was a clotheshorse. Luke frowned in annoyance, until he was handed the water bottle. It must have had a cooling unit attached, because the water was still cold, despite their journey through the desert. He gulped several mouthfuls, and then offered it to the stormtrooper. He ignored it, too busy seeing to the dewback. Luke wondered how he could go so long without water - especially in that suit of armor.

When the trooper returned from tying up the dewback, he relieved Luke of the pouches and pushed him towards the dark entranceway. There was no one guarding the door, and they walked through several rooms before another stormtrooper appeared.

He had a colored patch on his shoulder, which allowed Luke to recognize him as the Anchorhead base commander. There were no Imperials in Anchorhead who were not stormtroopers, as it was not important enough to warrant any higher attention.

Luke felt self-conscious as the man stared at him.

"We found him out in the wastes," his companion explained. "I think his family were killed by Tuskens."

"What is his name?"

"I don't know, sir."

Both troopers looked down at him, obviously expecting him to fill in the gap.

Luke tried to speak, but somehow, he couldn't quite form the words. It was as though he had forgotten how to speak. His mouth opened and closed, but no words were formed.

"I'll put a message on the local HoloNet," the commander said, eventually. "If someone hasn't responded by sundown, we'll transfer him to Mos Eisley."

Luke flinched at the words. Mos Eisley? He didn't want to go there. He wanted to go back home, with his aunt and uncle. He tried to say this, to explain it to the commander, but again, no words left his mouth. He turned away in frustration.

He felt a hand on his shoulder, and he was guided through the doors and into a corridor. They passed several jail cells, and Luke was fearful the commander intended to leave him in one of those. Instead, he was led into a plain room which held nothing but a couple of chairs and a table.

"Sit down."

Luke did so, and then looked up at the trooper. He had already turned to leave, though. The door clicked after it slid shut, a sound Luke was familiar with. Locked.

* * *

An hour after high noon, Obi-Wan set off across the desert, in the direction of the nearest farm. He had locked up the homestead and left a note stuck to the door, explaining to Luke where he would be, should he come home.

It would have taken a normal being a good three hours to reach the farm, if they were used to the heat, of course, but Obi-Wan managed to do it in half that time. The resident farmer was initially hostile to his presence ... he had gained a somewhat exaggerated reputation among the locals as a crazed sorcerer. The serious nature of his visit soon became apparent though, as he told of the Lars' death and the danger Luke was in.

The farmer immediately launched into detailed speculation about who the Lars had fallen victim too.

"It will be the Tuskens, for sure. Old Owen Lars ... always insisted he could show those monsters a thing or two."

"I must use your long distance comlink," Obi-Wan said, not willing to enlighten the farmer as to the true identity of the Lars murderer.

"I wish you could," the farmer shrugged. "But it's been broken for a month now. Been meaning to get it fixed, but I haven't been able to afford it."

Obi-Wan visibly slumped.

"You can check the local search and rescue HoloNet transmissions, though," the farmer continued, beckoning him down into their garage. "Maybe he's already been found."

"Thank you." Obi-Wan sighed with relief. At least it was something.

The computer terminal was archaic, but it was working. Obi-Wan quickly brought up the data and scanned the archive of news. One short line of text attracted Obi-Wan's attention immediately.

_Found, this morning. Human boy, pre-pubescent, blonde hair, blue eyes, dressed in pajamas. Claim at the Anchorhead Imperial base._

"That's him!" Obi-Wan almost laughed with relief. "Thank the Force he is safe." He turned to the farmer. "I must get to Anchorhead immediately. Do you have transport?"

The man gestured at an old, rickety landspeeder. "I'll have you there in no time."

From the looks of it, the farmer's boast was a vast exaggeration, but Obi-Wan had no reason to complain. Within ten minutes, he was on his way to Anchorhead, speeding across the dunes as fast as the old landspeeder could carry them. The farmer sat in the driver's seat, and Obi-Wan was appreciative of his understanding of the urgency of this situation.

The farmer made an attempt at conversation, but Obi-Wan could not afford the distraction. He could sense something. Not anything strong enough to cause him to stop this journey towards Luke, but it was unsettling, none the less.

" ... three generations, all wiped out because of those vile creatures. It's enough to make one wonder why we bother with this place."

Obi-Wan nodded, half-listening. His sense was growing ever stronger.

"When word of the Lars' death gets around, I can guarantee there will be a few people packing up and heading for greener pastures. Empire or no Empire, the core worlds must be safer than this."

"Stop the speeder!" Obi-Wan demanded. He stood up, reaching for his lightsaber.

The farmer complied, and Obi-Wan jumped down onto the sand.

"What is it?" he asked.

But Obi-Wan couldn't spare the time to answer him. He walked a few paces up onto a rise and surveyed the horizon.

A sudden yell behind him caused him to twist around, igniting his lightsaber in the process. He was a millisecond too late. The black-robed figure was already in the speeder's driver's seat, having thrown the farmer onto the ground. He gunned the engine, leaving Obi-Wan and the farmer in a cloud of dust.

Obi-Wan immediately stepped forward to check the farmer for injuries, but he shuffled back in shock. "Get away from me!"

Obi-Wan hastily switched off his lightsaber, realizing it must be scaring the farmer. It was too little too late, though. The man stood up and ran. Obi-Wan called out, urging him to wait, but he soon came to the conclusion it was useless. Luke was his priority now.

He resumed the journey on foot, moving as fast as he could. His adversary may have a speeder, but he was willing to bet he did not know where Luke was. If he did, he would have been in Anchorhead, not skulking around the desert, waiting in shadows to ambush him.

Still, that knowledge did not slow Obi-Wan's pace.

* * *

The light was dimming when a near exhausted Obi-Wan arrived in Anchorhead. He did not take a direct route to the Imperial base, due to his painful awareness of his enemy's likely presence among the populace. He shifted with stealth through the streets, keeping his eyes open and his senses heightened.

As he slipped in the doorway of the Imperial base, he became aware that Luke's presence in the Force was nowhere to be sensed.

"Can I help you?" A stormtrooper stepped out of the main office, looking him up and down.

"Yes. I am looking for a young boy. Blonde hair, blue eyes, by the name of Luke Skywalker. I believe he was taken here after being picked up in the desert."

"You're his guardian?"

"Yes," Obi-Wan said, not wanting to waste time explaining.

"Pity. I just put him on a transport to Mos Eisley ten minutes ago."

"Mos Eisley?" Obi-Wan snapped, his frustration getting the better of him. "Why in the blazes would you send him there?"

"This isn't an orphanage, old man. If you wanted him back, you should have contacted us earlier. We thought his parents were killed by the Tusken raiding party we found him with."

"I didn't ..." Obi-Wan broke off, realizing it was futile to try and explain. "Where in Mos Eisley has he been sent?"

"To the Child Protection Services building. Go and see them there."

Obi-Wan nodded and turned swiftly, leaving the building. A minor setback, that was all. He would obtain a speeder and go after him. Luke would be safe in his care by morning.

* * *

Luke was exhausted. Not from tiredness as much as sheer frustration. It was normally hard to get people to listen to you when you were eleven years old, but near impossible when you struggled to form a coherent sentence.

He didn't want to go to Mos Eisley. He had fought and struggled until the stormtrooper commander had at least agreed to try and contact his aunt and uncle. Luke had entered the frequency himself, just to make sure they got it right. He had sat in the commander's office, for almost an hour, waiting for someone to answer that call.

But nobody did.

After that, he had no longer resisted their attempts to put him in a speeder and take him away. Without his aunt and uncle, there was nothing for him there now.

It was getting dark now. Dark and cold. He huddled up in the passenger seat and wrapped the provided blanket tightly around his body. He watched the desert scenery pass by the window, but he didn't really see any of it. There was too much on his mind.

It was funny how quickly things could change. Yesterday, he couldn't have imagined a time when his aunt wouldn't be there to tell him to clean his teeth, or he wouldn't hear his uncle yelling at him to do his chores. Now he was never going to see them again.

Luke wiped away a stray tear as he thought about it. He should have done something ... maybe if he hadn't been so afraid he could have saved them.

The stormtrooper driver, if he heard his quiet sniffs, did not offer any sympathy. "We're here now, kid. Get out."

Luke fumbled for the door release. Once outside, he saw he had been taken to a well-maintained building, near the spaceport center. There was a sign outside, which said 'Child Protection Services'.

The stormtrooper held him tightly by the arm and guided him into the building. They entered the main office, which was tended by a droid. At the sight of them, the droid hit a button to activate a comm unit.

"Mr Garless, there is an Imperial stormtrooper here."

Shortly afterwards, a human man appeared.

"We found this one this morning," the stormtrooper said, pushing Luke forward. "His parents were killed by Tuskens." With that, the stormtrooper turned to leave. Luke stared after him, and then looked back at the man.

"We're overcrowded here," the man protested.

"Your problem," the trooper replied.

Within seconds, Luke heard the sound of the speeder driving away. He looked down at his feet and pulled the blanket closer, while clutching his T-16 model tightly. He must have looked pathetic, because the man spoke to him in a gentler tone.

"Don't worry, we'll find a place for you. Come with me."

Luke shuffled after the man, and he was led down a corridor. Everything was white and clean in here, not dank and dusty like the buildings in Anchorhead. He could hear the yells and shouts of other children coming from distant rooms.

His guide made a sharp left into a room, where a woman was organizing a large group of children. They all had packing cases and extra clothing, and it appeared to Luke as though they were preparing for a long trip.

"Liska, a stormtrooper just turned up with a boy. They said his parents were killed by Tuskens, and they found him in the desert this morning. Is there room for one more upstairs?"

The woman shook her head. "A couple of this lot made a fuss about leaving ... I didn't have the heart to force them."

The man turned back to Luke. "How would you like to go to another planet?"

Luke's heart jumped at the words. That's what he always dreamed of doing! He nodded eagerly.

"Take him with you, then, Liska. He's willing."

Luke found himself pushed into the room and added to the existing group of children. They stared at him curiously, but Luke was too shaken to show them the same attention. _Another planet!_

The woman in charge, Liska, appeared beside him. "Are those all the clothes you have?" she said, gesturing at his pajamas.

Luke nodded.

"I'll find you some more. It's cold in space."

"Does it snow?" a younger child asked.

Some of the older children laughed and began teasing the younger one. Luke drew away from the group, partially because he was shy, but mostly because he wanted to be alone right now. Presently, Liska returned with a bundle of clothes and passed them to Luke. Luke dug through the pile until he found a thick poncho, and he slipped it over his head.

"We're going to head out to the speeder bus now," Liska said to the group. "Keep together! We don't want anyone left behind!"

Luke followed the group back down the corridor and out into the back courtyard. They filed onto the waiting speeder bus quickly, and Luke purposely selected a window seat.

Perhaps it was because he was staring so intently into the darkness, but just as the speeder bus rose into the air, he thought he caught a glimpse of a black-cloaked figure, staring at them from the doorway of the building.

He shuddered, looking away.

* * *

It was a tired, yet still determined, Obi-Wan who drove up outside the Child Protection Services building, in a rented speeder. He jumped out and took one step towards the door, before his Force sense alerted him to danger.

He reached for his lightsaber and entered the building cautiously. Dust and dirt had been tramped down the corridor, and it provided a clear indication of just where his adversary had been. He followed the tracks into a room on the right.

This was obviously some kind of office ... but the droid receptionist had been sliced clean in two. Obi-Wan pushed open the adjoining doors, dreading finding any more dead bodies. But strangely, the rooms were all deserted.

He shifted back out into the main corridor and followed the trail up the stairs and onto the first floor. The dusty footprints continued for half the length of the corridor, and then made an about turn. Obi-Wan could sense something, though ... he followed that sense until he reached a room at the end of the hallway. He pushed the door-release and flattened himself against the wall, lightsaber ready.

Inside, he heard audible gasps, followed by silence. He looked around the edge and found a group of children staring right back at him, with wide-eyed expressions of fear. A couple of adults were in the room as well, holding the younger children.

Obi-Wan lowered his lightsaber and raised his hands in a universal gesture of peace.

"It's all right. I'm a friend. What happened here?"

A male adult stood up. "Someone dressed in a black robe and holding a laser sword forcibly entered the building."

"He's gone now," Obi-Wan said. Of that, he was certain. "He was looking for a human boy, with blonde hair, blue eyes ... he's eleven years old. It's imperative that I find him. Have you seen him?"

"A stormtrooper brought in a boy of that description just ten minutes ago," the man said. "He's gone to a docking bay with another group of children."

"A _docking_ _bay_? Why?"

"They're going to the core worlds. We've run out of room for orphans here ... there just aren't enough families able to adopt."

"What's the number of the docking bay?" Obi-Wan asked, desperately.

"Ninety-Eight."

Obi-Wan turned and made a run for the nearest window. He jumped out and landed below in the speeder driver's seat. Within a second, he had disappeared in a cloud of dust.

* * *

Luke couldn't believe his eyes as he stepped off the speeder bus. Their ship was huge! Even if he craned his neck all the way back, he still couldn't see the top. Floodlights illuminated it from all sides, in a manifestation of the awe with which he regarded it.

Chains of freight handlers were loading cargo into the exposed storage bays, creating a noisy hive of activity. Luke and the other children were just another shipment of cargo for these workers, and they pointed and pushed, directing them to the passenger's entrance.

Luke lagged behind though, wanting to see the ship's engines. A freight hauler of this size would need some impressive thrust to propel it into orbit. It wouldn't take a minute ... he could take a quick peek around the side, and then run and catch up with the rest of the orphans.

* * *

Obi-Wan abandoned the speeder halfway down the street leading to the docking bay. He could sense the dark presence, somewhere in the immediate vicinity, and he needed to be cautious. His hand tightened around his lightsaber as he moved quickly towards Luke's location. No doubt his mysterious opponent had also sensed his presence.

Obi-Wan knew he had the advantage though, should it come to another fight. The quick skirmish at the Lars' home had proven him to be the superior. However, Luke's presence added another factor. Defending himself was one thing, protecting a child was quite another. He would need every aid the Force could provide him.

Once he reached the outer wall of the docking bay, he bent his knees and leapt up to the top. He landed without a sound and withdrew into a shadow. The position gave him an immediate advantage. His eyes scanned the brightly lit docking bay, searching for any sign of Luke. Perhaps he was already on board.

No, there he was. Just like his father, he couldn't resist checking out a ship's engines, and he had obviously broken off from the main group. A sudden sense of danger urged Obi-Wan into action. He flipped off the roof and ran full tilt towards Luke, lightsaber ignited in anticipation of an attack.

"Luke! Get down!" he called in warning, fearful he would not reach him in time.

Luke froze for a second, staring at him in fright. His instincts must have kicked in though, because he threw himself on the ground. Just in time. A blaster bolt streaked over the top of him, exploding into the side of the ship.

Then, mass confusion erupted in the docking bay. Maintenance workers panicked, yelling out and pointing in all directions. Obi-Wan had seen the attacker though, concealed on the roof of an observation tower. If he ran, he just might reach him in time, but that would involve leaving Luke, something he never intended to do again.

He stood protectively between Luke and the direction of the blaster shots, lightsaber poised to deflect any further assaults. His concentration was shattered, though, when he felt a rumble behind him. He turned, eyes instantly shifting to the spot where he'd last seen Luke. The boy was gone. The ship was taking off.

Obi-Wan sprinted in the direction of the cockpit, ignoring the roaring wind of the repulsorlifts that were pushing him away. He had to stop this ship.

"Wait!" he yelled. "Stop!" He waved desperately at the pilots, but they either could not see him or chose to ignore him.

Within a minute, the ship was simply another moving dot among hundreds in the Mos Eisley sky.

Luke had left Tatooine.

* * *


	2. Politicians

* * *

**Chapter 2: Politicians**

* * *

It was with unnecessary force that Darth Vader slammed the palm of his gloved hand onto the door release. The doors obediently hissed open, splitting the words 'Hon. Senator Rye Denna' neatly in two.

Vader stepped into the foyer and headed straight for the reception desk. The seated assistant leapt up and backed away, not stopping until he was crushed behind a pot plant. Vader ignored him, walking past the desk and on to the subsequent doors. He halted when they did not open for him and raised a hand. A simple touch of the Force, and the locking mechanism was released. He resumed his journey, striding into the main office and up to the senator's desk.

Coruscant's senator looked up in surprise at his somewhat audacious entrance.

"Lord Vader! Ah ... what can I do for you?!"

Vader raised the object he'd been carrying in his left hand. Now in plain sight, the simple black datapad was held steady for a few seconds, until Vader was certain understanding had dawned, and then he snapped the object clean in half. He proceeded to crush the remains into shattered components, letting the wreckage rain down onto the previously tidy desktop.

Vader placed both his hands on the desk and leaned forward towards the senator. "If you ever again send me a two thousand page report and expect me to sign it, it will be your body I will break into pieces."

The man held up his palms in a futile attempt to pacify him. "Understood. It won't happen again."

"You will now explain to me, in short, concise sentences, the contents of that report and what, exactly, you require my permission for."

"I'd be happy to, Lord Vader, if you'll just give me a second to tell my assistant to reschedule my appointments. I have a meeting with the Monassi senator in five minutes, and I would not want to keep him -"

"This will not take five minutes," Vader said, straightening up and folding his arms.

The senator nodded, comprehending. "Very well. I require funding for a conservation research project on a small mid-rim world, Monassi. It is a simple request."

"You are not a scientist," Vader said, his voice dripping suspicion. "You are a politician. How does this project relate to you or the people you are supposedly serving?"

"Conservation research is in the interest of _all_ Imperial citizens," the senator insisted, blinking in feigned surprise. "I have been a proud member of the wildlife preservation society for over twenty years!"

"Why did you require my personal permission for this?" Vader asked. "Funding for conservation projects is the domain of the technology and development committee."

"Well, here's the funny thing," the senator said, with an overly casual smile. "A few years ago you were involved with a research project into improving the efficiency of all terrain scout transports -"

"I recall."

"Monassi was used as a test site. Rather than go through the red tape of getting permission to use the wildlife reserve, the project simply bought a large chunk of the land. The same land that I wish to conduct my project on. However, it's still listed as privately owned - by you."

"What a pity," Vader said.

"Yes ... I mean, no, not at all, because -"

"Because as long as I own that land, not one microgram of your undoubtedly illegal project will ever touch the soil."

"Lord Vader, I assure you -"

"I intend to find out the real reason why you want to conduct 'research' on that land, and when I do -"

Vader trailed off as the doors burst open, and a being he vaguely recognized as the Monassian senator burst into the room, waving a high-powered blaster. "You said five! Five million!" he yelled hysterically, waving the deadly weapon.

The senator pulled out a blaster of his own, but he did not hesitate to fire. Within seconds, there was a fully-fledged firefight going on, with one sheltering behind the doorframe and the other behind the desk. Vader watched it with slight disbelief, until he reached out a hand, causing both weapons to fly towards him. He discarded them and walked towards the Monassian. The scaly alien was staring at him in surprise, apparently only recently becoming aware of his presence.

"What is the problem?!" he demanded.

"Ah ...nothing, Lord Vader."

"Attempting to shoot one of your fellow senators is not nothing," Vader said, feeling like he was talking to an errant child. "What is the disagreement?"

"It is simply a minor business dispute," Senator Denna interrupted, standing up from behind his desk and straightening his clothes. "Isn't that right Senator Yitch?"

They eyed each other, briefly, before the Monassian senator nodded. "Yes. My deepest and most humble apologies for interrupting your meeting."

With that, he twisted around and ran for his life. Vader turned slowly to look at Senator Denna, who was grinning widely.

"Now, about getting permission for my project -"

Vader felt his teetering hold on his temper disappear in a flash. He stretched out a hand, using the Dark Side to drag the senator forward.

"Minor business dispute?" Vader said, squeezing the man's throat. "Conservation project?" He squeezed tighter.

The senator gasped for air. "No ...please!"

"You are a thieving, lying, scum pond of a politician."

"Mis ... mis under ... standing!" the man rasped.

"How fitting that your last words are yet more lies," Vader said, crushing the man's trachea. The body crumpled onto the floor.

Vader dusted off his hands, feeling his rage subside. That had felt surprisingly good. One less corrupt politician to bother him. Now, he could turn his attention to more important matters.

As he left the office, he idly wondered if anyone would notice the man was gone.

* * *

It was puzzling, sometimes, the way the human memory worked. Vader considered his past life as Anakin Skywalker a faded, insignificant memory, much like a recollection of an old holovid story. The passions and sentiments associated with that persona were alien to him. However, on this particular morning, his younger, adolescent self didn't seem so far away.

Once again, he was in trouble with his master.

The man in question sat in the throne in front of him, turned away to face the sprawling cityscape beyond the windows. He had not yet enlightened him as to the reason for his displeasure, and Vader could only guess what crime he had committed. If this situation was indeed anything like his younger years, he had undoubtedly broken some unspoken rule he didn't know existed.

"I hear that Senator Denna was found dead in his office yesterday," the Emperor said, finally breaking the silence.

Understanding came quickly. The senator must have been of use to his master.

"An unusual death," the Emperor continued, in a casual tone, "it appears his throat was crushed ... from the inside, no less. It defies the laws of physics."

Vader listened, wondering when would be a good time to speak.

"If I didn't know better," the Emperor said, swiveling the throne around to face him, "I would think he had been killed by my own apprentice. But then, I ask myself, what reasons could he possibly have to do such a thing? What reasons could he have to kill someone of such importance, when there is a multitude of insignificant underlings on hand?"

"I did not realize he was of use to you, my master," Vader said. "I apologize."

"How do you imagine he rose to the position of senator without being of use to me, Lord Vader?"

"I acted in haste without thinking, my master," Vader said.

"What did the man do to cause you to forgo all reason in such a manner?"

Vader considered it. In truth, he did not remember. There was something about a report, a project, a bribe ... somewhere, it all that political dealing, he had lost his temper.

"He attempted to obtain my permission to start working on a project, undoubtedly illegal. He was also in the process of bribing the Monassian senator."

"In other words," the Emperor said, "he was behaving as all politicians do, and it offended your misguided sense of honor. Really, Lord Vader, anyone would think you were a newly commissioned Jedi Knight."

He almost spat the last words, and Vader felt the chill of the Emperor's anger. Not directed at him, not exactly, but more at the very concept of the Jedi.

"You obviously need to take some time away, Lord Vader. The stress of the capital must be affecting your judgment."

"My master, I -" Vader started.

"Go to the Sith retreat, on Lygun. You may return in three weeks."

He turned away, clearly signaling an end to this conversation. Vader was speechless with anger ... he was not a child, to be sent away in isolation to consider his actions. But then, what was he going to do? Argue? That would not be productive, by any stretch of the imagination. He pushed down the anger, crushing it into the dark recesses of his soul.

There was a bright side to this situation, after all. There would be no politicians on Lygun.

* * *


	3. Coruscant

* * *

**Chapter 3: Coruscant**

* * *

Coruscant.

That's where they were going. Luke had heard of it before, of course - who hadn't heard of the capital of the galaxy? It was all one gigantic city; no oceans, no forests, no mountains ... and definitely no sand.

He'd been on this ship for three days now. Along the way, they'd made brief stops at other planets, and each time, the small group of orphans had halved. Now, there was only himself and four others. Coruscant was the last stop.

He wondered what was going to happen to him there. It would have been a wonderful adventure, if not for the constant ache in his heart. He was never going to see his aunt and uncle again. He'd always dreamed of leaving Tatooine, but he didn't want it to be like this.

"Do you think there will be banthas on Coruscant?"

Luke looked up at the small Ithorian boy sitting opposite him. He must be very young to ask such a thing.

"I think so," the girl next to him replied. "What would the sand people ride without banthas?"

"There are no sandpeople on Coruscant," their caretaker explained, from the other end of the room. "There's no sand. Only buildings."

A shudder ran through the craft, and Luke quickly scrambled up on the seat to look out the window. They had entered the atmosphere. Far below, spires and towers could be seen sticking up out of the clouds.

The ship gradually descended, revealing more of the buildings below. Luke opened his eyes as wide as he could, desperate to see more of the wondrous sight before him. Where was the ground? All he could see was an endless criss-cross pattern of trenches, filled with speeders of every shape and size.

Their ship dropped lower and lower, but Luke still could not see any sign of the ground. He wondered if it even existed.

He could have remained with his nose pressed against the glass for weeks, just staring at the constantly changing view, but the ship had landed, and their caretaker was calling him.

"Come on! We're here!"

Luke reached into the poncho, making sure he was still carrying his model T-16. It was all he had of his old life on Tatooine.

_Strange _, Luke thought, as he followed the caretaker down the ship's boarding ramp. Tatooine already felt like a lifetime ago.

Outside, he was immediately met with the stench of air pollution. He wrapped his arm around his mouth and then craned his neck, trying to see where he was. He was too low to see the top of the building, yet too high to see the bottom.

"Come on, kid!" the caretaker called, sounding annoyed this time.

He trotted after the group, who had already begun to move into the building. Why was everyone in such a hurry?

Inside, it seemed like they walked for hours, up stairways, and across walkways, until they finally arrived in a gray, sterile plaza. Luke looked around, reading the signs above the various offices. There was a law firm, and an accountant agency ... Luke's eyes fell on the largest office, which was guarded by two stormtroopers.

He was surprised when it became clear they were heading straight for them. On Tatooine, stormtrooper guards meant prison.

He felt sick for a moment, until one of the stormtroopers stepped sideways, revealing the sign. 'Imperial Family Services'.

Luke relaxed slightly, but couldn't help but wonder what stormtroopers had to do with families.

They walked past the guards and were led into a large reception area. There were several queues of people, streaming away from a single desk, and all of them seemed unhappy. There were no people behind the desk, only one red protocol droid.

The droid left the desk and walked over to meet them, causing the abandoned queues of people to all groan in annoyance.

"Are these new arrivals?" he asked, sounding as impatient as a droid could sound.

Their caretaker nodded. She handed the droid a datachip. "That contains their records. Except for the blonde human." She gestured vaguely at Luke. "We have no records for him. Sorry, I don't even know his name."

Luke looked at his feet, feeling like he didn't really exist.

Their caretaker bent down to say goodbye. "I'm leaving you with the nice droid now," she said. "Have fun."

Several of the younger children began to cry at the caretaker's words. She didn't pause in her hasty departure, though. Luke tried to comfort a small girl standing beside him, but she was inconsolable.

The droid was oblivious to the irritating wails. It beckoned to a nearby stormtrooper, who moved forward immediately. The droid extended one of its spindly arms and handed the trooper the datachip.

"These children have just arrived. Enter their details into the computer system and then take them to the incoming dormitory."

"Forget it," the trooper said. "I'll take them to the dormitory, but data entry is your job, droid."

Luke blinked in surprise. He'd never heard a trooper disobey an order before.

"I am aware of that, trooper, but as you can see -" the droid gestured behind him, where the queue had extended by another three meters. "I am otherwise occupied."

"I'm a solider, not your secretary!"

They continued to argue for a good two minutes, with the droid making calm, rational responses while the trooper grew increasingly emotional. Luke watched this exchange in puzzlement, until the trooper finally relented and started pushing the group towards a nearby office.

"All right, hurry up, I haven't got all day!" He then mumbled something behind his helmet which sounded suspiciously to Luke like 'sniveling brats'.

He rushed through the processing part, banging the computer buttons with such force, Luke was sure the records must be full of typos. When he discovered Luke had no record, he cursed with a few exotic swear words, and then started interrogating him for details.

"Name?"

Luke tried to speak, but found he still couldn't remember quite how to form words.

"Age?" the trooper asked, impatiently.

Luke shrugged, shifting away in fear. The other children were staring at him like he was crazy, but he couldn't help it. He just couldn't remember how to talk.

"Ah, forget it."

He was left alone, but not for long. Once the trooper had finished with the computer, he came around with a big roll of labeling tape. Every child received a label, containing a serial number and a name. All except for Luke's - his label had a number, but instead of a name, his had 'unknown'.

Luke studied his number, wondering whether it was random, or whether it related to anything. It was 15123.

The incoming dormitory turned out to be one large hall, full of noisy children. Some were running around in circles, others were fighting, but most were simply huddled against the walls, looking scared. Their stormtrooper host made sure they were all in and then shut and locked the door.

The younger children in their group began to cry louder, but they were scarcely audible above the racket in the room. Luke gazed around, wondering where he was supposed to fit in to all this chaos. Eventually, he picked a space against the wall and sat down, hugging his knees.

"Where are you from?"

Luke turned to the speaker, feeling nervous at being spoken to. It was a girl, around his age.

His mouth made the movements to answer her, but no sound filled the air between them. He turned away in frustration.

She soon lost interest in him and walked off to participate in a nearby game of cards. He looked around for something to hide under and saw a thick, black blanket, folded neatly in a corner. When he wrapped it around himself, it created a dark cave, where he could withdraw from staring eyes and questions he couldn't answer.

He wasn't sure if he ever planned to come out.

* * *

Obi-Wan sat silently, following the movements of the protocol droid up and down the length of its reception desk. He learnt to be patient during this daily ritual, when he visited the Mos Eisley Child Protection Services office seeking news of Luke. On the first day, he'd been most decidedly impatient and paid the price with extended waiting times for the rest of the week.

As he waited, he couldn't help but wonder how Anakin would have handled a situation like this. Actually, he didn't need to wonder about it. Anakin would have jumped in the first ship he could find and headed for the stars, probably saying he had a hunch.

Obi-Wan had no hunch, however, and he knew his best bet for discovering Luke's location was the droid pacing up and down in front of him. Qui-Gon would have approved, though. If only he had taught his padawan a way to use mind tricks on droids ...

"Can I help you, sir?" it finally asked, looking up.

"Yes," Obi-Wan said. "I was in here yesterday. And every day before that. I'm here for the same reason I was here on those days."

"I'll consult my records," the droid said, withdrawing to a room behind its desk. It returned a minute later.

"Our staff member in charge of escorting the child you seek returned to Tatooine yesterday afternoon."

Obi-Wan sucked in a sharp breath. "And?"

"If you wish to converse with her on the subject of the child, you will have to arrange an appointment."

"Can I see her now?" Obi-Wan said, reminding himself to remain calm.

"You will have to arrange an appointment," the droid repeated. "She is very busy. It will probably take a few days until she can fit you into her schedule.

_Patience _, Obi-Wan reminded himself. _A Jedi must have patience_.

The words were not any consolation.

* * *

Life at the Family Services center was as routine and ordered as Luke had ever known it. On Tatooine, he'd always thought of other planets as havens of excitement, full of spaceports and star pilots. Perhaps Coruscant was like his dreams, or perhaps it wasn't. Either way, he would never see it.

Three days after he'd arrived at Family Services, he was shifted out of the incoming dormitory and into a smaller room clearly intended for a long-term stay. It was lined on either side with ten sets of 3-tier bunks. The room had two bathrooms, and they each had their own lockable storage bin, for holding the standard issue clothing and any other personal possessions.

They were given three meals a day and snacks at regular intervals. Security droids would arrive on every hour and escort groups out to the exercise yard. Although what they called a 'yard' was really just another room in a different part of the building. It didn't even have a window, but the walls were covered in projected holograms of the sky.

The room they lived in had a window, but it was only for those outside to look in. All the occupants saw was a reflection. Some of the younger children would entertain themselves by performing for imagined visitors behind the glass.

Luke wasn't interested in all that, however. All he wanted was to get out. Maybe the others were used to an institutional life, but he wanted to see the horizon. He couldn't verbally communicate his frustration though, so it had to find other outlets. He'd been dubbed 'the lock boy' by the others, due to the long hours he would spend picking at the drywall and studying the circuitry which connected the door lock to the controls on the other side.

One week after he'd moved in, his claustrophobia had reached a new intensity. At lunch, he'd managed to swipe a fork, and now he was making the most of his new tool. It was after midnight, and the others had all drifted off to sleep, but he was still very much awake.

There was a small, round hole in the dry wall, right above the main power fuse, which connected the lock mechanism to its power supply. It was pitch dark, and if he made a wrong move he could end up deep fried, but it was worth the risk. If only he could reach the darn wire.

He heard footsteps behind him and glanced over his shoulder. It was the Twi'lek girl who lived in the bunk underneath his. He had learned her name was Vallie.

"Are you _still_ at it? Stars, give it a rest, lock boy!"

Luke frowned and turned back to the task at hand.

"You sure are stubborn," she said, coming closer. She picked up a blanket and wrapped it around his shoulders. "Here. You must be freezing."

He accepted the blanket and tried to say thank you. There was still no sound out of him, though. The frustration of it caused him to concentrate harder on the wall. If only he could get out of here, maybe he could speak again.

There was a groan from the top of a nearby bunk, and a spiky-topped Zabrak boy raised his head from the pillow.

"Shut up, Val."

"It's not me!" she insisted. "It's Lock Boy."

"Lock Boy is talking? Yeah, right."

"No, he's still trying to bust out."

"Tell him to go to sleep!"

"I did. I think he's really lost it, Crix."

"Hang on. I'm coming." Crix yawned loudly and dropped down to the floor with a thump.

Luke didn't spare them a glance, though, because he knew he was getting close. Just a little bit more to the left ...

Something twanged inside the wall, and the little red light on the lock blinked once and then disappeared.

Luke turned back to Crix and Val with a wide grin. For all his inability to communicate, those two were the closest people he had to friends around here. They made sure he got his fair share at meals and prevented the bullies from getting too close to him. They watched out for all the newbies, but they'd taken a shine to him in particular, for some reason.

"What's he grinning about?" Crix said. "I think you're right, Val. He has lost it."

Just as Crix finished speaking, the doors suddenly slid into the walls, revealing the deserted corridor. To Luke, the sight made him joyous and frustrated at the same time. His joy made him want to shout in triumph, but as it had always been since Tatooine, his voice had other ideas.

"Val ..." Crix said, staring at the open doorway in shock.

"Stars! He's done it!"

"Quick," Crix said, suddenly moving into action. "I'll go get the blankets."

Val nodded. "And keep quiet," she whispered. "Don't wake anyone else."

Luke didn't need to collect anything from the space he'd designated as his own. All his possessions were already in his pockets. He entered the corridor and then paused. He may as well wait for the others ... it might pay to have some company out there on this big, busy planet.

They soon joined him, and the group made their way towards the exit. All the staff droids were powered down, and the stormtroopers were on light patrol, meaning it was a simple manner to sneak past them without notice. A security barrier blocked the main entrance, but there was a small gap underneath. Not wide enough for an adult, but it wasn't too much trouble for Luke and his companions to hunker down against the floor and slither under it.

Then, they ran off into the night, soon leaving their prison far behind.

* * *

Luke was breathless after their escape. It took a lot of effort to get anywhere on Coruscant. This planet wasn't like Tatooine, where you could only move across the surface. Here, moving across-ways was difficult without an airspeeder, but moving up and down was simple. All of them had unanimously agreed that upwards was better than downwards, and so after an hour of traveling, they had set up a makeshift camp on top of the last building they had managed to reach.

Luke stretched out on his blanket, staring up at the glittering display which was the Coruscant night sky. There were endless lines of ships, criss-crossing, merging, and eventually traveling out of his field of vision. He wondered if the speeders ever crashed into each other and what would happen if they did.

"What are you thinking about, lock boy?" Val asked.

Luke looked up at her and pointed at the sky.

"Yeah, it is beautiful," she agreed.

"Maybe he was saying that he thinks it's going to rain," Crix said, smirking at Val.

"No he wasn't. I can understand him ... you've just got to look at his eyes."

Luke frowned to himself. He liked his new friends, but he wished they'd realize that just because he couldn't speak, that didn't mean he couldn't listen and understand. They talked about him like he wasn't there.

"What are we going to do now?" Val asked, after a moment of silence.

"I know what I'm doing," Crix said. "Looking for my father."

"Crix! No!"

"I don't care what you think. He's my father."

"No one who treated you and your step-sister like he did is your father. Besides, you said yourself he's probably on the other side of the galaxy by now."

"I'll find him, even if it takes me the rest of my life. They had no right to take me away from him!"

"Here we go," Val sighed. She glanced over at Luke. "I wonder if lock boy has parents."

"Sure he does," Crix said. "He probably got snatched away from them like me. How about that, lock boy? Do you have a father?"

Luke nodded. "Pilot," he said, absently.

He started at the sound of the word from his mouth and turned to meet Crix and Val's surprised gazes. "Pilot," he repeated, louder.

"So you _can_ talk, lock boy!" Val said. "Your father is a pilot?"

Luke hesitated. In his dreams, his father was a pilot. And they flew together, all over the galaxy. There had been a lot of those dreams, recently.

"Don't strain him," Crix said. "This is probably like amnesia. Takes a while to come right."

"Strain? It was just a yes or no question."

Luke turned away, snuggling down into the insulating blanket. He was happy that he was able to speak again, but he felt like indulging in some of his piloting dreams right now. They'd be plenty of time for talking tomorrow. Judging by the snores he soon heard behind him, Crix and Val had come to the same conclusion.

* * *

"Coruscant?" Obi-Wan repeated, feeling his hopes turn to dust.

The staff member nodded. "I left him at the main Imperial Family Service's holding center. He may still be there - you could probably put in a long distance call from the spaceport communications center."

"I have to go to him," Obi-Wan said, standing up. "I have to get him back. He is in grave danger."

"I shouldn't think so - they have very good security."

_But not good enough for this threat_. She wouldn't understand though, so Obi-Wan didn't bother to explain. Enough time had been wasted already.

"Thank you for your help," Obi-Wan said.

She returned his smile. "Good luck finding him. Coruscant can be quite overwhelming."

"I know," Obi-Wan said, distantly. "I used to live there."

* * *

Life on the 'streets' of Coruscant was a constant struggle. Val and Crix were quite open to stealing to get what they needed, but for Luke, it was a difficult transition. He preferred to make use of some of the charity organizations, which offered free food and shelter for street kids such as themselves, but there was always a long, long queue. They were also operating under the law - living on the street was illegal on Coruscant, as Luke soon discovered. Stormtroopers patrolled the walkways, looking to round up anyone who appeared homeless.

Neither Val nor Crix could tell him what happened to the people the stormtroopers rounded up, but Luke had a fair idea what would happen to them if they were caught. Back they would go to the prison known as 'Imperial Family Services'.

His prediction was soon proven right. It had started much like any other day, with the three of them eating the last of yesterday's takings on the roof of a building. It was one of the lower buildings in the area, but the view was still incredible. They could see straight across the outskirts of an industrial area and into the glittering heart of Coruscant known as Imperial City. Even the air surrounding the affluent area was cleaner than elsewhere.

Luke sat in silence, taking it in, while leaving the chatter to Val and Crix. Val was reading an old newspaper, which they'd retrieved from a rubbish bin in the hope of finding discarded food within. They'd been unlucky, but Val had still kept the newspaper. She was always reading something.

"What do you think the Emperor does all day?" Val asked, pointing to a blurry holographic picture of the galaxy's leader.

"I don't know." Crix picked at his food. "Sits around and gets waited on hand and foot. Isn't that what all the Imperial leaders do?"

"Then who runs the galaxy?"

Crix shrugged. "Droids?"

Val laughed. "If it was run by droids, it would be in a darn sight better condition that it is now."

"Which one is the Imperial Palace?" Luke asked, suddenly.

"The one with the huge statue of the Emperor outside," Crix said, pointing.

"Why, Luke?" Val asked. "Dreaming of moving in?"

Crix sniggered. "Emperor Skywalker. How about it?"

"Can we go and see it up close?" Luke asked. "We could grab a free ride on the back of a hoverbus."

Val flicked a seed out of a piece of fruit and took a bite. "Why not?" she said. "We've got nothing else to do today."

"I guess we might as well see the sights," Crix said, in a fake-posh accent. "While we're touring the galaxy."

"Maybe Palpatine will hear we're in the area and invite us to afternoon tea," Val suggested, in an equally affected voice.

"Who's Pal ... pal-pa-tine?" Luke asked, confused.

Val and Crix both chuckled. "You really are from the Outer Rim, aren't you, Luke?" Crix said. "Emperor Palpatine. He rules the galaxy?"

"We didn't get much news on Tatooine," Luke explained. "And my Uncle Owen hated news. He would always turn it off when I came in the room." Luke thought back, remembering. "I did know there was an Emperor, though," he insisted. "And an Empire."

"Well the two usually do go together," Crix said.

"Do you know who that is?" Val asked, holding up the newspaper and pointing to a figure standing next to the holographic Emperor.

Luke studied the person - he sure looked creepy, whoever he was. Dressed entirely in black, and his head was covered by a full helmet and mask.

"No," Luke said. He studied the person for another few seconds, thinking. "He looks familiar, though," Luke added.

"That's Darth Vader," Crix said, looking over Val's shoulder. "He's the Emperor's successor. He commands the entire navy."

Luke blinked at the picture, imagining what it would be like to have entire fleets of star destroyers at your command. "Why is he wearing that mask?" Luke asked.

"He always wears it," Crix explained. "Maybe he comes from a planet where they breathe a different sort of air."

"Or maybe he wears it so he doesn't have to smell you, Crix," Val said, shuffling away. "When was the last time you had a shower?"

"Zabrak's don't need showers," he said. "Because we don't have hair." He ran his hand over his horns, to emphasize the point.

"What a lie!"

"Are we going to Imperial City or not?" Luke asked, impatiently.

* * *

Jumping on the back of a hoverbus was a dangerous and difficult task, which most people in their right mind wouldn't dream of attempting. But for Luke, it was one of the biggest thrills he'd ever had in his young life. Once they had risen into the air and were streaming through the Coruscant traffic, Luke felt like the king of the universe.

Val and Crix huddled down under one of the tail adornments, but Luke climbed right up high, enjoying the wind blowing through his hair.

"You two all right down there?" he yelled, as the bus swerved to avoid a merging speeder.

They answered him only with a shared look that said 'you're crazy!'. He laughed, knowing they were probably right and loving it.

Finally, the bus reached its destination, a landing pad or two away from the Imperial Palace block, and the three of them jumped off and ran for the elevators.

"I think I'm going to be sick," Val complained, as they reached a lift. "We're walking on the way home."

"Walking? You can't walk anywhere on Coruscant," Luke said, pressing a button for a lower level. "I swear, this planet has no ground."

"You think all the buildings just meet up at the core?" Crix asked.

"Maybe."

The elevator doors made a hiss and then slid open, revealing a clean concrete sidewalk right outside.

"You spoke too soon, I think," Crix said, stepping out. "This is the richest block in the galaxy. Of course they'd have streets."

Luke joined Crix outside and gazed around. There was the odd stretch of sidewalk, but it was clear they'd simply built over more streets underneath, in order to achieve this effect of a surface.

"Where's the palace?" Val asked, joining them. "I've lost my sense of direction."

"That way," Luke said, pointing to Val's left. "Come on."

They took a few steps forward, before seeing a group of stormtroopers heading towards them. They quickly turned, only to see another one coming up behind.

Luke was about to run, when Crix held him back. "Steady, Luke. They're aiming their blasters - it's not worth your life."

"Show me your identification," the lead stormtrooper said. "All of you."

Luke swallowed as he stared up into the faceless mask. He wasn't so sure that Crix was right.

* * *


	4. Soulmates

* * *

**Chapter 4: Soulmates**

* * *

After three long, slow days had passed, Vader was becoming increasingly bored. It was one thing to come here when he had personal issues to settle and strategies to consider, but quite another to be forced to take a retreat one did not really need.

All he'd done was kill one worthless politician. It was hardly a serious crime. When he had first joined his master, the man had delighted in his killings, encouraging him at every opportunity. When he now exercised the skills his master had taken such pride in teaching him, this was the reward he received?

The thought made him increasingly angry, but he did not let it go. A Sith drew his power from anger, and if he ever hoped to heal himself and restore order to this galaxy, he would need every bit of anger he could possibly muster.

On the afternoon of the fourth day, he occupied himself by going for a walk outside. The retreat was located in the center of an island, which was also home to a hostile and dangerous eco-system. Even the water was poisonous to all but specifically adapted life. Vader knew it had been built here to ensure the privacy of the first occupant, but he was also aware of the correlation between the native and the Sith method of accomplishing goals.

Sitting unchallenged at the top of the food chain was a monstrous species the first explorers of the planet had dubbed 'gargoyles'. Early Sith occupants of the retreat had obviously taken great pleasure in the sheer brutality of these creatures, as the log books were scattered with references to their single-minded killer instinct. One passage, which stood out in Vader's mind, described an eye-witness account of a parent and child fighting each other to the death. On success, the child subsequently devoured its own parent. Such was the level of aggression, that Vader found it hard to fathom how they managed to raise their young at all.

It wasn't difficult to see the relationship with the Sith. They, too, were powerful beings who accomplished their goals through aggressive means. One wrong move, and they, too, could end up fighting each other to the death. But in the meantime, the master had to train the apprentice, and the apprentice had to learn from the master, so it was better to avoid such confrontations. In his own case, he admired what his master had done and was in the process of doing for the galaxy. It was an honor to serve at his side. Enough of an honor, that he chose to remain here, despite his boredom.

Vader paused on top of a rise, surveying the view. On the western horizon, he could see a jagged outline of another island. Moving dots were coming and going from the highest peak and faint cries could be heard in the wind. It must be the gargoyle's breeding season, as that was the only time they would hunt during the day. Hungry offspring who ate three times their body weight in a day called for desperate measures. Such desperate measures, in fact, that he would have to watch his own back.

Vader couldn't help but wonder at the irony of parenthood, as he turned to complete the journey back to the retreat. The unfortunate situation of the gargoyles was a perfect example. Draining yourself day and night, to feed a demanding offspring who would likely kill you in the future. Even a witless animal should be able to see the severe imbalance in that relationship. Yet they still continued to participate. But even their situation was nothing compared to an intelligent species native to the planet Ubessa. The males died within an hour of impregnating the female, who in turn died after laying the eggs.

What was it then, that attracted people to parenthood? It all seemed so illogical and yet ... there was a faded memory, somewhere in the depths of his mind.

_"Ani ... I'm pregnant."_

Vader paused, angrily shaking his head. It was weak and foolish and ... that person was gone, that life was gone ... 'Anakin' did not exist. And the child had died with her.

A nearby yowl caused him to forget his pain and draw his lightsaber in preparation.

He moved around the side of a rock and saw the creature concerned. It was a greenish-skinned gargoyle, scratched and bleeding. A predatory sea bird was attacking it in a methodical fashion, while the creature twisted round and round in a losing battle to keep it away. One of its wings hung limply by its side, undoubtedly injured in a fight with one of its own kind.

It was somewhat humbling to see such a powerful creature taken down by something scarcely a quarter of its size. Vader wondered why the gargoyle didn't run for cover. Its wing may be broken, but its legs looked healthy. Instead, it held its ground, becoming ever weaker. It was looking increasingly like the bird was going to have a gourmet feast tonight. Vader was about to turn away and let nature run its course, when curiosity caused him to glance back, one last time. There was truly something odd about the gargoyle's behavior.

It was a coincidence that Vader happened to look in the right direction, revealing the solution to this puzzle. Camouflaged among the reddish-toned rocks, was a gargoyle cub, barely the length of his arm. So, this dying creature was a mother protecting her young. That explained the irrational behavior. Vader stepped forward, seeking confirmation that this was indeed the situation, and the bird and the creature were not simply fighting each other for a meal.

His movement out of the shadow attracted the attention of the bird, who gave a loud squawk and flew for the sky. In the ensuing second, the gargoyle also noticed his presence and rushed at him. Vader held his lightsaber ready, but the creature turned away at the last minute, obviously not willing to move too far away from the hidden youngling.

Its wing was dragging roughly on the ground and its body was heaving with ragged breaths. Vader was not surprised when it keeled over, finally exhausted. It would be nothing but dust by tomorrow.

He walked around the body, curious about the cub. It was not just anyone who was given the opportunity to see a gargoyle cub up close. In all truth, he was probably the first.

The young creature was equally curious about him. It squealed at the sight of him and shuffled out of its hiding place. Its wings were only bumps on its shoulders, but it waved them back and forth rapidly.

Vader picked it up, surprised at how light it was. Strange to think that this creature would soon be as monstrous as its dying parent.

The youngling let out a raspy crying sound, having caught sight of its mother. Vader put it down, allowing it to shuffle across the gap between them. It crawled up on to the body, continuing to bawl with agonized howls.

Vader felt his dormant temper begin to rise. He knew how that young creature felt, despite the vast physical differences between them. He could still remember that terrible day, when he had stood over his own mother's body, unable to find any sense in her death. Anakin was gone ... long gone ... but the anger and hatred remained. It would always remain. It was part of him, now.

A far deeper howl, stirred Vader from his tortured memory, and he was surprised to see the adult gargoyle had managed to lift its head.

So, it wasn't quite dead after all.

Another position he was quite familiar with. Having a body so injured, so weak, it made no sense that it could continue to house one's spirit and yet it refused to give it up. Holding it prisoner, in a broken, shattered shell.

It seemed he had found a pair of soul-mates in these creatures.

* * *

It had been a simple distraction, at the time. An idle way to pass the days until he could break this forced exile and return to civilization. But before he knew it, these monsters had become attached to him, and he to them.

It appealed to him, on some level. It was only fitting that a Sith Lord should have a pair of monsters as his devoted pets.

But as he had nursed the adult back to health and hand-reared the youngling, he had discovered that these creatures were somewhat undeserving of their infamous reputation. They were aggressive, certainly, and they were carnivores. But the parent and child displayed a devotion to each other of an intensity he had never seen in a non-sentient animal.

And they weren't mother and child, as he had first assumed, but father and son.

The father was nothing short of doting. He refused to eat anything until he had seen that his son had eaten first. He became flustered and upset if his offspring wasn't in his immediate vicinity and would spend long hours grooming and cleaning his cub, despite his weak condition.

The son was curious and playful, wanting to explore every millimeter of the retreat. Vader discovered him in the strangest of places. In cupboards, under chairs. Even stuck on top of a bookcase, on one memorable occasion. The cub was too adventurous for his own good, appearing unaware that his wings were still only buds. It was good that his parent kept a tight rein on him, or it was unlikely he would live to see his first set of fangs.

By the end of the second week, the adult had regained partial use of his wing, due to Vader's care. He couldn't fly long distances, but he was quite capable of hunting to provide for both himself and his cub. Vader expected the pair to move on and return to the wild where they belonged. They had other ideas, however. Ideas which involved spending most of their day sleeping in various nests they had built around the retreat, their favorite places being in his personal rooms.

Three days before he left Lygun, Vader finally relented and gave them names. The adult had a greenish sheen to its thick hide, where as the youngling was a brownish-red. Seeing as the pair were nearly inseparable, he decided to name them after a two-headed podrace announcer he had known in his youth. Fode and Beed.

As he boarded his flight, on the final day of his exile, he couldn't help but feel a slight ... regret, as the two creatures sat nearby, clearly aware of his imminent departure. He would have liked to bring them back to Coruscant, but he doubted city life would agree with them.

Still, he would be back, soon enough.

* * *


	5. LJ151

* * *

**Chapter 5: LJ-151**

* * *

"Well, I guess Imperial City was a bad idea," Crix said.

"No kidding," Val mumbled.

Luke didn't reply. He was staring numbly out the window of the airspeeder, watching hundreds of speeders streak by in the opposite direction. He'd give anything to be on one of them. The windows were shut tight, however, and the doors were locked. He was here to stay.

He glanced in front, where the stormtrooper driver was maneuvering onto a landing pad. He recognized the place from the first time he'd arrived on Coruscant. He'd been so innocent then, of the fate that awaited him. Not so, this time.

The second stormtrooper stepped out of the speeder first, and raised his blaster.

"Get out!"

"Can't he say please?" Val mumbled.

"That's not in their vocabulary," Crix replied. "Come on, Luke! Before they stun you."

Luke reluctantly dragged himself away from the window, and found himself being pulled out of the speeder by the driver stormtrooper. He was then pushed in front, and all three of them were escorted through the building, back to the IFS office.

Once there, they were handed over to the guards, who gave them all a thorough search. Luke was carrying the most of the three, with bits of wire and circuitry he'd collected during their time on the outside. It was all removed from his pockets, and swept into a large bin.

They were then taken to a bathroom, where they were instructed to shower and change into provided clothing. Despite being back in this horrible place, Luke was glad of the opportunity. A real shower, with water, was something he'd never experienced until arriving on Coruscant. Although he'd have preferred to have one without a stormtrooper standing on the other side of the door, stun blaster at the ready. Not the most relaxing circumstances.

When they emerged from the bathroom, Crix and Val were already waiting in the corridor, with their accompanying stormtrooper guards.

"Where do you think they're taking us?" Luke whispered, as they were prodded down the corridor.

"Back to the dormitories?" Val suggested.

"They're down the other end," Crix said. "We're heading for the offices."

Eventually, they stopped outside an office door marked 'Administrator'. One of the stormtroopers pressed the door-comm, and they waited for a response from within.

The doors soon slid open. Luke was surprised when he caught sight of the room. Unlike the rest of the building, this room was spacious, well-lit and had several windows, overlooking the traffic lanes. It was also stacked high with datapads, all organized in neat little piles. There was a large display screen on the wall, showing a schedule of appointments over the next month.

A lady sat behind the desk, studying the computer screen and drinking a steaming beverage. The sign on the desk said 'Administrator Pel Larcy'.

A stormtrooper stepped forward to report.

"Administrator, we have recovered the children who went awol from room B7. What are your orders?"

She gave them a glance over the rim of her mug. Luke noticed she stared at him a bit longer than the others.

"What are their numbers?" she asked.

A second stormtrooper - there were three in total - held up a datapad and read from it. "12291, 12221, 15123."

"Take this," she said, passing a datapad to the lead trooper. "Sign it after you have transferred them to the high-security dorms, and return it to the internal affairs desk."

Crix and Val seemed to flinch at the words, and Luke glanced at them, curiously.

"Sir, there is only room for another two people in the high security rooms."

"Then transfer one out."

"Which one, sir?"

"Oh for star's sake." She slammed the mug down on the desktop. "Any one. Can't you see I'm trying to file a tax return here?!"

The stormtroopers began herding them out. Just as Luke was nearing the door, she spoke again.

"Wait. Which was the one who broke the lock?"

Luke spoke up, suddenly seeing a chance to voice his misery. "I did! I hate it here ... I don't want to stay here!"

"Put that one in an isolation room," she replied, ignoring his plea. "And make sure the room is guarded at all times. We can't afford another break-out. I've got the precinct security office breathing down my neck already."

"Yes, sir."

Luke was held by the forearm as he was pushed towards the exit. The last thing he heard as they left the office was some reminder about filing transfer forms.

"Don't worry, Luke," Val said, seeing his distressed expression. "You'll get out of here again."

"I hate it here," Luke repeated.

"At least you're not going in the high-security rooms with all the pyromaniacs," Crix moaned.

"They're not all bad," Val insisted. "Once you get to know them."

"I don't want to get to know them! I want to go back to room B7. That was luxury."

They walked on in miserable silence for a few minutes, until one of the troopers behind them spoke.

"Will someone remind me how we ended up with the babysitting duty?"

"We'll be transferred soon," another trooper insisted.

"That's what they said last week. And the week before. I want out. I've had it with filling in her stupid forms. I want some action! We were trained to be soldiers, not paper pushers."

Crix and Val exchanged amused glances at the trooper's whining, but Luke was too depressed to even smile.

They reached a junction in the corridor, and the whining stormtrooper shifted forward to separate Val and Crix from Luke.

"We'll take these two." He gestured to the third trooper, and then to Luke. "You take that one. Then fill out the forms."

"I'm not filling out any forms!"

"Someone's got to do it."

The troopers stared at each other, at a stalemate.

"You know," Crix said, "if you just let us go ... none of you will have to do it."

"Yes we will," the whining trooper said. "We'll have to fill out 'notification of incompetent performance' forms."

"How about we fill in one form each?" the trooper next to Luke said.

"We need to complete four individual forms."

"Then we'll fill in one and one third of a form each."

"Done - meet you in twenty minutes."

Luke felt the trooper grab him by the shoulder, and he looked desperately at Val and Crix.

"If I make it out, I'll come for you," he insisted. "Watch for me!"

"Same here," Crix said. "Good luck."

With that, Crix and Val were taken away by the troopers, and Luke felt himself being pulled down the opposite corridor.

* * *

Obi-Wan drew his hood tightly around his face as he entered the holo-communications booth. It was only partly to ensure his anonymity and mostly to try and block the disgusting smell, probably caused by the furry brown growth on the left-hand wall. It was hard to believe this was one of the better communication centers in Mos Eisley.

He waited patiently for the call to connect, hoping the frequency had not been discontinued in the meantime. It was a long time since he last contacted this particular person.

When his blue image appeared on the viewer, he looked as regal and collected as always.

"Obi-Wan? Obi-Wan Kenobi! Is it really you, my old friend?"

"It is good to see you, Bail," Obi-Wan said. "However, I contact you under grave circumstances."

"Luke," Bail inferred. "Something has happened to Luke?"

"The Lars were murdered three weeks ago, by a creature who came in the night. Luke ran off into the desert and was picked up by a stormtrooper patrol. Before I could reach him, he was taken by the child protection administration to Coruscant."

"Coruscant? Of all the places -"

"I know, Bail, but time is short. I was hoping to find you on Coruscant yourself, but I see that is not so."

"I try and avoid the capital as much as I can, my friend. Every moment I spend there is a moment spent watching the galaxy fall ever deeper into despair. Palpatine grows more corrupt by the day, and the senate is little more than a show to reassure the public. I can do far more good at home."

"I understand, my friend. However, I need your assistance to retrieve Luke. He is at great risk. If the Emperor should discover him -"

The holographic Bail raised his hand. "You don't need to tell me, Obi-Wan. I will have an agent retrieve the boy and escort him back to Alderaan."

"There is another complication."

Bail frowned with concern.

"The Lars murderer - he was a Jedi. Although, _used_ to be a Jedi would be a better description."

"I thought -"

"A few have survived," Obi-Wan explained. "And a few have fallen to the Dark Side, fueled by their anger towards the Sith. His target was Luke, not the Lars."

"But why go after Luke?"

"He knew he was Anakin's son."

"Does he know Luke is now on Coruscant?"

Obi-Wan sighed. "I don't know. He disappeared after Luke left Tatooine, and I have not heard anything since. If he does, Luke is in even greater danger."

"Would a former Jedi risk setting foot on Coruscant, though?" Bail asked. "Right under the nose of the Sith?"

"If desperate enough."

"I will send word to Coruscant immediately, Obi-Wan," Bail said. "Luke _will_ be safe."

"I only hope it isn't too late," Obi-Wan said. "I fear that Vader would have sensed the boy's presence as soon as he entered the atmosphere."

To Obi-Wan's surprise, Bail smiled.

"Vader isn't on Coruscant, my friend. According to the senate grapevine, he was sent away by the Emperor after he murdered Senator Denna - one of Palpatine's bootlickers, who was about to table a bill to rescind employee rights on all military construction projects."

"At last, some good news."

"Thank the Force for small mercies," Bail said, with a grin.

* * *

"Kid?"

Luke felt someone prod him in the side. He didn't respond.

"Kid?! You still alive?"

He was prodded harder this time. Hard enough to hurt.

"Stop it," he mumbled, into the pillow.

"What? Can't hear you."

Luke pulled the pillow over his head, hoping it would send out the right message. No such luck.

"Kid?"

He was prodded again.

"What?" Luke said, shifting the pillow away and looking up. A stormtrooper stood beside his bunk, staring at him with the blank, dark helmet eyes he'd become so used to looking at over the past week.

"You haven't eaten anything. The trooper on watch before me said you didn't eat anything during his shift, either."

"So what?"

"So, you have to eat if you want to keep living. Basic rule of survival."

"I'm not hungry," Luke said, letting his head flop back onto the pillow.

"During training, I learnt how to force feed a prisoner," the stormtrooper said. "Maybe I should test it out on you."

Luke shifted away in horror. "Go away! Aren't you supposed to be watching me from behind there?" Luke pointed to a glass window, behind which was a viewing area. Stormtroopers occupied it in shifts.

"Relax, I was only joking, kid."

Luke rolled his eyes. "Stormtroopers don't have a sense of humor."

"Maybe the others don't. I do."

"I thought you were clones," Luke said.

"We are. The others don't choose to develop their sense of humor."

"Well _yours_ needs a lot of work," Luke said. "Because force feeding people isn't funny."

"That wasn't my best material."

"Oh stars," Luke said. "Can you _please_ leave me alone?"

"Sure, kid. After you eat your food."

Luke eyed the plate, deciding it was probably worth it. He pulled it towards him and picked up the fork. Vegetables. Green ones, at that. He pushed them around in circles, wondering whether he could sneak them under his pillow.

"All right, I'm eating it," Luke said. "Can you go now, please?"

"After you take a bite."

Luke groaned.

"It's for your own good, kid. You're too skinny."

"I am not," Luke said. "And stop calling me 'kid'."

"What's your name, then?"

"What's yours?" Luke asked, unconsciously taking a mouthful of vegetables. He wasn't serious - he didn't think stormtroopers had names, but he was answered, none the less.

"LJ-151."

"151," Luke repeated. "That's the start of my IFS serial number."

"Coincidence, huh? Are your initials L and J?"

Luke smiled. "No. But close. My name is Luke Skywalker."

"So you _can_ smile. There was a bet going around the squad that you were permanently unhappy."

"What do you expect?" Luke said, gesturing at his surroundings.

"You wouldn't have to stay in here if you'd stop trying to break out. We could put you back with your friends."

"I _hate_ it here," Luke said.

"So do I, Luke. But you think living on the street is better? I've done street patrol. I know it's not pretty out there."

Luke took another few mouthfuls, thinking it over. LJ was right about life on the street, that was for sure, but it was still better than living in this world of boring routines and routine boredom.

"Why does anyone care if I break out? You wouldn't have to guard me anymore. You wouldn't have to feed me, or give me these clothes."

"The Emperor doesn't want people living on the streets. It's disorderly and spreads disease."

"Who cares what the Emperor thinks?"

"I do," LJ said. "It's our duty to enforce his will."

Luke mashed his fork into the last remaining mound of vegetables, imagining the green mush was the Emperor. If he was Emperor, he'd let people live on the streets. He'd let people do whatever they wanted, as long as they weren't hurting anyone.

Eventually, he pushed the plate in LJ's direction and turned away.

"I've had enough."

"Better than nothing," LJ said. Luke heard him remove the plate and turn towards the door.

"My shift is ending," he said. "I'll be back to watch you late tonight."

"You're all the same to me," Luke said.

LJ didn't reply, but he did look back for a moment. Luke ignored him

* * *

Luke had eventually drifted off to sleep, half-hoping he wouldn't wake up until he was an adult and too old to stay here. The past week had felt like a year already. Several hours later, he was shaken awake by his stormtrooper watcher, with his own cries ringing in his ears.

"Luke?"

Luke blinked at the white helmet, feeling his heart beating rapidly in his chest. The stormtrooper moved towards the switches beside the door.

"No, don't turn on the -" Luke started, weakly. Too late. "Light." he groaned, shielding his eyes.

"Are you all right, Luke? Do you need to go to the medcenter?"

"It was just a nightmare," Luke said, still rubbing his eyes. "I'm not sick. And how do you know my ...?" He looked up at the stormtrooper. "Oh," he said, understanding. "It's you. LJ."

"LJ-151," LJ said. "There are a thousand LJs out there. I'm the only LJ-151."

Luke lay flat and turned sideways so he was facing the wall.

"I'm fine," he said, blankly. "You can go now."

"You don't look fine to me," LJ said. "You look like you're crying."

"I'm not," Luke said.

"Sure. Well, if you want to talk anyway ..."

"You don't quit, do you?" Luke said, sniffing.

"Quitting? What's that?"

Luke pulled the pillow over his head, hoping that would convince LJ to leave him be. He should have known better, though. Before long, the sensation of a blanket being draped over his body caused him to flinch.

"What the -? What are you _doing_?" Luke reared away.

"You lost this on the floor," LJ said. "Thought you might want it back."

"I don't need tucking in!" Luke yelled.

"What do you need, then?"

"I _need_ my aunt and uncle," Luke said, finally cracking. "Not you. You're a stormtrooper."

"You used to live with your aunt and uncle, huh?"

Luke nodded, wiping away a tear. "On Tatooine." He propped his head up on his elbow and fidgeted with the pillow fabric. "They're dead," he mumbled. "It's all my fault."

"You killed them?"

"No," Luke said. "Some stranger murdered them. But I could've saved them."

"How?"

"I could've fought him ... instead I was hiding in the garage." Luke thumped the pillow, angrily. "Hiding in the garage like a cowardly hutt-faced sleemo."

"Luke, you're a kid. You barely reach my chest. You think you'd be a match for some murderer? You'd have been killed too. Do you think your aunt and uncle would've wanted that?"

"But I could've done _something_!" Luke said. "I bet my father would've known what to do. He'd have been ashamed of me."

Luke sniffed, imagining his father looking at him in disapproval. It was all he could see whenever he thought of the man lately. He could no longer take any pleasure in daydreams of flying around the galaxy with his father. What father could have adventures with a son who was too frightened to save his own aunt and uncle? That was a stretch of the imagination too big for even his overactive mind.

"Your father?" LJ said. "You're losing me. I thought you said you lived with your aunt and uncle."

"I did," Luke said. "My father died. I never knew him."

"Then how do you know he would have been ashamed of you? That's crazy."

"I don't know." Luke fidgeted with the bedclothes. "But I bet he was braver than me. Anyone would be."

"It sounds like you've had it pretty rough, buddy," LJ said, finally. "I know what that's like."

Luke was curious. "You do?"

"A year ago, I was stationed on the Hondero asteroid belt, and I had it all. A squad I'd trained with for so long, we could predict each other's movements without even thinking about it. We were unstoppable. We didn't know what the word 'failure' meant."

"What happened?"

"A Rebel attack. They were all killed. I was the only one who survived. Then the powers that be thought I was too conditioned to work with another squad, so I was transferred to the light duty roster. See this is what they call 'light duty'."

"Do you miss them?" Luke asked. "Your squad, I mean."

"Every day."

"Does it ever stop hurting?" Luke asked. "Sometimes ... it hurts so much, I feel like I can't breathe."

"It hurts in different ways," LJ explained. "At first ... before it's settled in, it doesn't really hurt that much, because you just feel numb and shocked. Then the reality starts to settle in, and that's when it hurts the most. You may feel angry, guilty ... you wonder what you could have done to prevent it. But time can heal all wounds, buddy."

Luke nodded, feeling a little better. "Sorry I was mean to you," Luke mumbled.

"It's okay. You're sick of being in here, huh? I'll tell the administrator that you're suffering psychological stress, and she'll probably agree to have you transferred back in with your friends."

"You'd do that?" Luke said, almost feeling the urge to smile.

"Anytime, buddy."

"You know, LJ-151, you're not like the other stormtroopers," Luke said, lying back and stifling a yawn.

"That is the best thing anyone has ever said to me," LJ said, covering Luke with the discarded blanket.

* * *


	6. A New Senator

* * *

**Chapter 6: A New Senator**

* * *

"Well?" Obi-Wan asked, struggling to keep his emotions under control. Bail didn't look pleased with himself, and his reply confirmed Obi-Wan's fears.

"I'm sorry, Obi-Wan."

"He is dead, then?" Obi-Wan asked, dreading the answer.

"No, he is alive. But getting him is proving to be a problem."

"Why?"

"Bureaucracy."

Obi-Wan made a noise of frustration. "Corsucant."

"You may not believe me, but it is worse than at the height of the clone wars. My agents made preliminary enquires at the Family Services Administration office, and they were told to arrange an appointment. Just to confirm whether Luke was in fact residing there."

"And three months before they will release him into your custody, I suppose?"

"We will find a way, Obi-Wan. It is just a matter of finding the right person to bribe and when."

"I have a better solution," Obi-Wan said. "I will go."

"Obi-Wan, the dangers of you going within a lightyear - Vader is due back on Coruscant any day now!"

"I'm going," Obi-Wan said. "I may die there, I may not. But if it is my time, I swear I will see that boy to safety first. Every moment he is there is another moment he is in danger."

Bail did not look happy. "What is your plan?" he asked, reluctantly.

"I will arrive on Coruscant and retrieve Luke. You will have a transport standing by to escort him to safety."

"A flawless plan," Bail said, raising an eyebrow in a slightly sarcastic way.

"I will contact you when I am approaching Coruscant. Have the transport ready to launch at a standard hours notice."

Obi-Wan raised his hand to cut the call.

"Wait! How are you planning to get to Coruscant?" Bail asked.

"Leave it to me," Obi-Wan said, firmly.

"_Jedi_," Bail muttered.

Obi-Wan grinned.

* * *

"Morning, LJ-151," Luke yawned, noticing the stormtrooper walking carefully between the rows of bunks.

"How do you know it's me, kid?" LJ asked, looking down at him in surprise.

Luke thought about it for a moment. He couldn't really explain it himself ... he just _knew_ it was LJ.

"You wear your helmet on a certain angle," Luke suggested.

"Sure I do. Go back to sleep - its not even 0700 yet."

"We woke at dawn back on the farm," Luke explained. "You had to get as much work done as possible, before the midday heat."

"Sounds like this planet of yours was a real sizzler."

"It was one big desert," Luke said, "and it had two suns. I couldn't wait to leave it. I just wish it hadn't been like this."

LJ nodded. "And speaking of places you can't wait to leave," he said, "I noticed you giving the laundry droid a once over during the duty rotation last night."

Luke shrugged. "I thought it might have needed fixing. I'm good at fixing droids."

"I don't doubt it. I don't doubt that you know how to sabotage them, too."

"Who me?" Luke said, with a careful mix of innocence and surprise.

"Yes _you_, buddy. And you know where you're gonna end up if I see you doing that again, right?"

"Flying free as a bird?" Luke suggested, with a smirk.

"You wish." He gave Luke's hair a brief ruffle. "Now sleep - or fake it, at least. If you start running around, they'll all start waking up, and the early morning shift is the only peace and quiet I get."

Luke nodded. "Sure - but, ah, before that ... um ... can you take me to the refresher?"

LJ made a groan that was oddly distorted through his helmet.

"Hey, it's not my fault," Luke insisted.

"I know. Come on, then."

Luke crawled out of his top-bunk and followed LJ over to the main doors. Unlike his first dormitory, this high-security one did not include refresher facilities. They had to be requested and then personally escorted when they were needed. Crix said it was due to vandalism. Still, even monitored bathroom breaks were worth it to be back with his friends.

Luke had initially thought a trip to the 'fresher would be the best time to attempt escape, but that idea soon faded when he saw how vigilant the stormtrooper guards were. LJ was the worst of the lot. Giving up didn't even occur to Luke, however - there was a weakness somewhere, he just had to find it. The laundry droid had been his latest idea, but LJ had caught on to that one a little too quickly for his liking.

It was a little frustrating, how perceptive his new friend could be, but Luke knew he wouldn't change the situation for anything. It felt good to know there was someone watching out for you, in this cold and dreary institution, even if they were watching out for you in ways you didn't want them too.

Luke had soon discovered that he wasn't the only one to know LJ by serial number. Apparently he had a notorious reputation among the orphans in the high-security dorm, as having absolutely no tolerance for anyone who stepped out of line. When he was on patrol, things instantly got a whole lot quieter.

Luke had an advantage though, in that he could tell LJ apart from the others. The rest of the orphans simply had to guess. Some had been there so long, they had memorized the duty rotation, but they didn't always share that knowledge with the others. The troopers also had their names on a small barcode alongside their utility belt, but no one was willing to get that close. Otherwise, people usually discovered they had struck LJ after he cracked some dry joke after busting them in the act of some misdemeanor. As he had told Luke, he was the only trooper in the building with a sense of humor.

But despite his love for rules and routines, he had a warm heart and a friendly nature ... and a definite soft-spot for Luke. He may be a clone and a soldier, but Luke knew LJ understood him. If only he'd let him escape from this place, it might have been the perfect friendship.

He kept a firm hand on his shoulder, though, all the way to the bathroom and again on the way back. Luke walked with his head bowed, staring at the floor, but he looked up when LJ's grip tightened slightly.

Ahead of them, a couple were being led down the adjacent corridor by a droid. LJ gestured for him to pause, and they waited until they were gone before they resumed their journey back to the dorm.

"Who were they?" Luke asked.

"A couple looking to adopt, I guess. Pretty early - maybe they thought you guys would look better while you were sleeping."

"Adoption?" Luke asked, surprised. "I didn't know you could be adopted from here."

"Of course. What do you think those one-way windows are for?"

"So you guys could stare at us without us knowing about it."

"We can do that anyway."

"Do you think anyone would ever adopt me?" Luke asked, curious at the thought.

"Luke, I don't know why anyone wouldn't want to adopt you. Heck, _I_ would adopt you if that was legal."

"I'm not sure I want to be," Luke said, waiting to one side as LJ took him through the dorm security doors.

"Why not? I thought you were desperate to get out of here."

"I am, but ... " Luke shuffled back up the bunk ladder, trying not to shake it too much. The occupants of the lower tiers were still asleep. At the top he crawled back under the blankets and looked back at LJ. "What if I ended up with some people who hated me?"

"Wouldn't happen. They don't just let any person who comes in off the street adopt. They check them out for suitability and all that."

"But what if there was a perfect family who I really wanted to move in with, but they wouldn't let me because they said they were unsuitable? What then?"

"Then too bad."

"But what if -"

"You know, you sure ask a lot of questions for 0700," LJ said, pushing the pillow over Luke's face.

* * *

Arriving back on Coruscant after a time away was always a time of depressing familiarity for Vader. It was like coming back to a messy house after visiting a spotless mansion. Things were always just as bad as he had left them, despite his faint hopes for improvement.

This time, however, was different. The instant the streaks of light turned to stars, an image entered Vader's mind. A woman, hazy and distorted, but still instantly recognizable. She was pregnant. He was happy, yet worried for the future. What kind of galaxy would this child grow up in? She needed protecting, now more than ever. Even as his arm was extending towards her, the image shattered, leaving only the memory of her name in his mind.

He released a breath, then struggled for the next one. He hadn't pondered on those particular memories for longer than he could remember, and now they had invaded his mind twice in a matter of weeks.

As his breathing returned to normal, he focused on his ship's controls, automatically moving to transmit his clearance codes.

It was nothing. Just a random image, probably stirred up by a spark in one of his life support systems. He really should get them checked as soon as possible. Perhaps after he had reported to the Emperor.

* * *

"What's wrong?" Val asked, looking up from her databook.

"Huh?" Luke said, looking across from his bunk. "Oh - nothing."

"You jumped up like you got a fright."

"Just thought I heard something," Luke said, shrugging.

Val went back to her book, but Luke didn't relax. It felt like something had changed, somehow. But whether for the better or worse, he couldn't say. He often had these funny sensations, which he couldn't make sense of. Uncle Owen had always discouraged him from talking about it, so it remained a secret.

Maybe he was just going crazy ...

* * *

"I trust your time away was productive?" the Emperor enquired.

Vader considered his answer. In all truth, he hadn't accomplished much by way of meditation and training. He'd been too busy seeing to the needs of his new pets. But that was hardly something to tell the Emperor. However, the Sith Master seated on the throne before him had not specified in exactly what way he meant the term 'productive' to be interpreted.

"Yes, my master," Vader said, bowing in greeting.

"Good. Much has been occurring here, both in the present and in the future revealed to me through the Force. I sense an event on the horizon which will have repercussions for the whole galaxy."

"What is the nature of this event, Master?" Vader asked, curious for more details. Did this have something to do with his brief vision? Reading the future had never been an area where his interests lay, mostly because whatever he saw was almost always some harbinger of doom. To his master, however, the future was like his modeling clay, just waiting to be molded to his vision.

"Patience, Lord Vader. There are other matters to concern you, in the here and now. A new senator has been appointed, to replace the late Senator Denna. A man by the name of Lerrod, who was the late senator's closest advisor and protégé. I trust you will make the effort to ensure this one stays alive. Until the next election, at least."

Vader considered suggesting that the new Senator Lerrod take care to stay on his good side, but he doubted the Emperor would sympathize.

"I sense that he will be easy to control," the Emperor continued. "If he proves himself, I will allow him to remain in the position for as long as he manages to stay alive. I've noticed that the job seems to have a high fatality rate."

The Emperor paused to cackle, but Vader could see no amusement. He doubted any of the aforementioned assassinations had been honorable deaths.

"You will meet him at the court gathering next month," the Emperor continued, once he'd stopped chuckling. "We have much to celebrate, my friend. The project we started construction on eleven years ago has passed its halfway point."

_Eleven years_, Vader thought, idly. Had it really been so long? Where had all those years gone?

"I sense a time of expansive growth for the Empire in our future, Lord Vader. Our dream of a galaxy of order and peace will soon be at hand."

"Yes, Master," Vader said, vaguely wondering why the words did not bring him much joy. He was more curious about what event the Emperor had spoken of earlier, but his master had not seen fit to enlighten him further.

"I am utterly dedicated to seeing your vision become a reality," Vader added, wary of the Emperor sensing his wandering focus.

The Emperor continued to speak of the future, but Vader was finding increasingly hard to pay attention. Eventually he was dismissed, and Vader took the opportunity gratefully.

_Eleven years_ ...

The concept continued to amaze him as he roamed the majestic hallways of the Imperial palace. Eleven years since the birth of the Empire. Eleven years since he'd taken on a new identity. And eleven years since ...

Eleven years was a long time. What would they look like now, had fate had a kinder destiny for his wife and child? She would undoubtedly look like she always had ... like an angel. The child ... would be on the verge of adolescence, slowly beginning to leave childhood behind and take on its adult personality. Perhaps it would be starting to show a stubborn, independent streak, causing its parents to start blaming each other for its presence. He couldn't blame her for their child's attunement to the Force, though, that would be all his -

Vader suddenly came to a halt, finding himself in an unfamiliar corridor on the west side of the palace. What in the galaxy was he thinking about? Anakin was dead! All those that person had loved were dead, too.

So why were these memories suddenly attacking his mind?

He needed to return to his meditation chamber and withdraw deep into the Dark Side of the Force. That would soon keep this debilitating psychological baggage at bay. And that's all it was - baggage. Excited synaptic pathways from somebody else's life.

And it really was beneath him.

* * *

"Do you mind?" Crix said, leaning over the top of his bunk.

"Mind what?" Luke asked, turning to pace through another cycle.

"He's been like this all morning," Val said, jumping gracefully to the floor. She stopped Luke at the top of his pacing length and forced him to sit down, on the bunk below Crix's.

"I can't help it," Luke said, rubbing his head. "I just feel like something is going to happen, that's all. Something big."

Crix leaned over further, giving Luke a good view of his upside down spiky head.

"You mean you've thought of a new plan for getting out of here?" Crix asked, his voice dropping to a whisper.

Luke glanced up and down the length of the dorm, making sure LJ wasn't on duty. They were safe for the moment.

"I checked out the laundry droid. It would be possible to sabotage it so it would return during the early hours of the morning. There's one problem, though."

"Go on," Val said, sitting beside him.

"There is still one stormtrooper on guard duty from 0100. Someone will have to get him out of the room. That means one of us will have to stay behind."

"I will," Val said, immediately.

"No way," Crix said, teetering under the effect of gravity.

"Don't talk like you're the boss of me," Val snapped.

"I'm not going to leave you behind to rot in here!"

Luke rolled his eyes. He didn't quite understand the relationship between his two friends. Some days they weren't even speaking and other days they could pass for overly protective siblings.

"Can you keep it down?" Luke said. "If at least one of us gets out, they can plan a way to get the other two out from the outside. So we won't be leaving someone behind for good."

"Fine, it's settled then," Val said, standing up.

Crix looked distant for a moment, before pulling himself up and out of sight.

* * *

An opportunity for sabotage arose later that afternoon, when a laundry droid visit happened to coincide with the absence of LJ from dormitory patrol duty. The laundry droids were programmed to travel around the room, picking up all provided red bags and placing them in a cart. Most of the residents ignored them - except those who had forgotten to put their laundry in the red bags. They ended up chasing after the droid and trying to fool it to do an extra pickup.

This time, however, the droid made a longer than normal stop at the foot of Luke's bunk. Crix and Val provided the perfect distraction, by starting a pillow fight in the opposite corner. Once Luke had completed his adjustments to the droid's internal clock, he gave them a thumbs up signal. Now all they had to do was wait and see if this was going to pay off.

It was a simple plan, really. Luke had fooled the droid into thinking it had to make another sweep of the room at two am that morning. Precisely the time when guard vigilance was at its lowest. The droid would enter the room, make its round and then exit with two extra items walking close behind.

Luke agreed to be the one to stay awake. He woke up early every morning anyway, due to his Tatooine conditioning. If the droid showed up on cue, he would wake Crix and Val, otherwise he would leave them to sleep. He and Crix made sure they were all packed the night before, in order to make a quick getaway.

The other two drifted off to sleep immediately, but it took Luke longer than normal. The thought that this might be his last night in this place was making his mind buzz. Freedom could only be a few hours away.

He must have drifted off eventually, though, because the next thing he knew, it was two am and the laundry droid had entered through the main doors. Luke reached under his pillow for the end of a length of string. The other end was tied to one of Val's head appendages, and she had assured him that a single tug would wake her.

It took her a few seconds to come around, but she performed her part without a hitch. The lone stormtrooper on guard duty escorted her out without a question. Clearly he wasn't aware that laundry droids never visited the dorms at night.

Luke jumped to the floor lightly, then climbed up to wake Crix. His eyes were already open, though.

"Ready?" Luke said.

Crix began to sit up, then stopped. "Listen, you go without me."

"What?"

"I'm sorry, but I can't leave her behind! What if she gets blamed for our absence, and they shipped her off to some military school, or -"

"Crix, I -"

"Go," Crix repeated, pointing to the droid. It had nearly finished its run. "You need your freedom more than us."

"I'll come back for you," Luke said. "I swear. Watch out for me - it will be soon."

"I will."

Luke picked up his belongings and ran for the door. Something was telling him that this was the right thing to do.

It wasn't until much later that Luke discovered why.

* * *


	7. Jedi Attack

* * *

**Chapter 7: Jedi Attack**

* * *

"Hydrospanner."

The astromech droid rolled forward, whistling while it extended its claw.

Vader retrieved the tool without looking at it. He regretted that when he realized he was trying to loosen an engine bolt with a wire stripper.

"I said _hydrospanner_," Vader said, tossing it back so it bounced off the droid's metal dome.

The droid beeped in a whiny fashion something about it being 0400.

"One of the few times I do not have to suffer in the presence of incompetent humans," Vader said, pointing at the droid. "I could do without droids who seek to imitate their example."

The droid made a rude noise, but then sought to find the correct tool. Vader waited impatiently, until he was distracted by the sound of the elevator doors sliding open. A stormtrooper stepped into the ship hangar and marched forward until he stood beside the ship.

"A problem?" Vader asked.

The trooper produced a portable holoprojector. "Captain Harper, sir."

Harper was the captain of the Imperial City security guard. He wouldn't contact him at this time of night without a very good reason.

Vader flicked on the receiver, curiosity piqued. Funny, he hadn't sensed anything amiss.

"Lord Vader!" The captain saluted in greeting. "My apologies for interrupting you so early."

"What is the problem?" Vader asked, impatient for the point of this call.

"Forty minutes ago, there was a break-in at a government administration facility in the 12th precinct. It seems the attacker was a Jedi, sir. I thought I should inform you immediately."

"A Jedi?" Vader repeated. He stretched out with the Force, seeking confirmation. There was something out there, he could feel that much. "Did you take him into custody?"

"He was gone by the time backup arrived. I have ordered a search, and we have stationed extra troops on every landing pad."

"What was the nature of the facility?" Vader asked, starting to walk towards a nearby ship.

"A holding center for children who are wards of the state."

Vader came to a halt.

"I know how it sounds, sir," the captain continued. "But I viewed the security recording myself - if this was a hoax, it was expertly done. The attacker had a lightsaber, and he used it to deflect blaster bolts. Some of the facility's stormtrooper guards were injured during the confrontation."

"What motivation would a Jedi have to attack these children?"

"I cannot say, sir. Hostages, perhaps? The guards are in the process of determining whether any children are missing or injured."

"I'm on my way," Vader said, cutting the call.

Jedi or not, this situation was dripping with suspicion.

* * *

Obi-Wan was waiting for Bail Organa to contact him. His friend didn't disappoint. When the rusty, second-hand comlink he'd picked up on the Mos Eisley streets began to whistle, Obi-Wan shifted to a secluded alcove, ensuring he would not be overheard. Not that there were many passengers, besides himself. This freighter was hauling sulfur.

"Bail?"

"Obi-Wan - are you on your way to Coruscant?"

"Ten hours away, at my last estimate."

"I think you should consider turning around."

Obi-Wan frowned. "What happened? I sensed a disturbance."

"Someone broke into the Family Services holding facility last night. Someone with a lightsaber."

Obi-Wan breathed in quickly.

"It's all over the media - they're speculating wildly on this one. The Emperor has vowed the Jedi will be caught by nightfall."

"The Lars murderer," Obi-Wan said.

"But here's the catch, my friend. No child was injured or taken. Vader was seen at the facility himself within an hour of the attack, and he did not leave with any child in tow. I think we can conclude that Luke was not at the facility at the time."

"Unless his hunter was disturbed before he could reach him."

"What is your plan, then?"

Obi-Wan stroked his beard, considering. There was really only one thing for it.

"When I arrive, I will enter the facility and determine whether Luke is still there. You will have a ship standing by, in case I find him."

"They have enhanced security to ridiculous levels -"

Obi-Wan waved a hand dismissively. "Anakin and I once broke into the bothan treasury as part of a training exercise. I can handle a few stormtroopers."

"And if Luke is not at the facility?"

"I will go to ground. I still have a few hiding places on Coruscant."

"Good luck, my friend."

* * *

At first, Luke had not regretted his decision to leave IFS without Crix and Val. But now he was starting to. He hadn't been prepared for the loneliness he would feel, alone in the vast city without a friend. People pushed past him without giving him so much as a glance. He was hungry, too, and the shelter they used to visit for food appeared to have been closed down by the Empire. He didn't know where to look for another one. He was wary of straying too far into the lower levels, as they were filled with gangs and violence.

If it were up to him, he would find a spaceport and try and stow away on a ship. Any planet had to be more friendly than this place. He'd even prefer Tatooine. But he couldn't leave Crix and Val behind. Not after he'd promised he'd come back.

An idea for breaking them out had started to come to him, in an isolated spot atop one of the lower buildings where they had often slept during their first stint on the street. He'd only got as far as marking out a plan of the IFS facility in the dust, before he'd fallen asleep on top of a pile of old newsfaxes.

He found himself being shaken awake later that afternoon. His defensive instincts caused him to jump up and raise his arms to fight, but he paused when he found himself staring at a pair of shiny white boots. His only hope with a stormtrooper would be to stall until he let his guard down, and then run for his life.

"Luke!"

Luke looked up in surprise. There was only one stormtrooper who knew his name.

"LJ? What ... what are you doing here?"

LJ gestured around. "Seeing the sights. Experiencing the culture. Yourself?"

Luke frowned. "How did you know where to find me?"

"Your friends told me."

"I don't believe you!" Luke said, shaking his head in disbelief. They would never betray him like that!

LJ stepped closer. His blaster remained holstered, but the sentiment was clear enough. Unfortunately, Luke had pressed himself into a three-sided gap to shield himself from the wind, and now the fourth side was blocked by LJ.

"I'm not coming back with you!" Luke insisted.

"You want to live here?" LJ gestured around at the concrete wasteland. "This is no five-star hotel, kid."

"It's no prison, either," Luke countered.

"I'm not going to stand here and argue with you. If you won't come quietly, I'll stun you."

"You wouldn't."

"I would."

"Go ahead, then," Luke said, smirking and folding his arms.

LJ's hand moved to his belt, and for a second, Luke thought he was really going to do it. He raised his hands in protest and then found his left wrist locked in a pair of binders. LJ snapped the other side onto his own wrist, leaving no possibility for Luke's escape.

"You're brave," LJ said. "I'll give you that."

Luke pulled on the binders, but he was no match for LJ's strength.

"Not fair," Luke said, sulking.

"Are you going to bring your stuff?"

Luke bent down to pick up his sack and allowed LJ to pull him away. He dragged him across the vast expanse of the roof, until they reached a small utility speeder, parked along one edge. Luke was made to crawl in across the driver's seat, so both of them could get in without having to undo the binders.

"You missed some big excitement last night, buddy," LJ said, starting the engine.

Luke wasn't interested in friendly conversation. LJ hadn't bothered to undo the binders, which meant his hand was being uncomfortably pulled around while LJ operated the speeder controls.

"Who cares?"

"I do. I got to report to Lord Vader. _The_ Lord Vader, himself. _Me_, LJ-151, reporting to the second in command of the Empire."

"Darth Vader was at Family Services?" Luke said, with a smirk. "I'm not that gullible."

LJ lifted the speeder into the air, and they joined one of the main traffic flows.

"That's what happens if you leave," he said. "You miss out on all the action. For your information, he _was_ there - we had a break-in. I was stationed on corridor guard at the time and next thing I look up and there's a guy with a laser sword trying to get into one of the dorms. I tried to shoot him, but the bolt just bounced right off his sword."

"So Darth Vader was there, and a laser sword wielding person attacked Family Services?" Luke said, wondering if LJ had finally gone crazy, or whether this joke had a punchline.

"No, Lord Vader didn't arrive until afterwards. The Jedi - although, it may not have been a Jedi - took off. Then we called the city guard for backup and next thing Lord Vader is there, and I had to make a report about what I saw. I'm never going to complain about being assigned to light duty again."

Luke shook his head, still not knowing what to make of this.

"And speaking of Jedi ... did you hear the one about the Jedi who couldn't vacuum his sofa?"

"I don't want to," Luke said.

"He had no attachments, see."

"I don't get it."

"Jedi ... no attachments? And you need attachments on a vacuum to clean your sofa?"

"Is there a point to that, or is it just another of your stupid jokes?" Luke asked.

"Ah, your generation ... you know nothing about Jedi."

"I do so," Luke said. "They used to tell those old stories on Tatooine, too. About people who could move things with their mind, and know what was going to happen before it did and ... but my uncle said those were just old stories, and no one could really do all that. Why do you think this person was a Jedi, anyhow?"

"Because of his laser sword. Jedi have laser swords ... at least, they did. Some say the Jedi are all dead now, but maybe there's one or two still out there. Anyway, after he had left, I was going through the dorms making sure no one was hurt or missing. Guess what? Your bed was empty."

"So you told everyone I'd been kidnapped by a Jedi?"

"No. Because your friends explained that you'd left two hours earlier. I had a good rant at them over letting you out here on your own, and I guess they must have taken some of what I said to heart. They told me I might find you here."

"I was doing fine!" Luke insisted.

"Yeah. I guess you might have lasted for another three days."

LJ turned out of the traffic lane, causing Luke to be pulled towards him.

"Ouch!" Luke complained.

"Sorry. I'll let you out of those soon."

"I think I'd have preferred it if you'd stunned me," Luke complained.

"Yeah, but it might have looked a bit heartless, you know? A stormtrooper dragging a stunned kid around ... that's the kind of thing which ends up all over the HoloNet."

"Since when did you ever care about looking heartless?" Luke asked. "And can you let me out of them now?" They had touched down on the landing pad.

"Once we get inside," LJ said.

Luke was surprised at how many extra troops were stationed throughout the building. There were two on every corner and teams of them marching around in formation. It seemed LJ had told the truth, after all. But why would someone attack Family Services? Someone with a laser sword ...

The connection hit Luke just as he and LJ entered the wing where IFS was situated.

"LJ!" Luke said, coming to a halt. "I can't go back!"

"Yeah, yeah," LJ mumbled, not pausing.

"No, I mean it!" Luke said, struggling to resist. "I know why that person attacked last night!"

"Sure."

"I'm serious! Was he really thin, and dressed in black robes that covered his face? Was his laser sword red?"

"Yes, come to think of it."

"That's the person who murdered my aunt and uncle! He was looking for me!"

LJ stopped, finally giving Luke some attention.

"I can't go back!" Luke said. "He'll come back for me!"

"Luke, if anyone is trying to kill you, the safest place you could possibly be is in the facility. We've got the place staked out like a fortress right now. And besides, didn't you tell me this planet of yours is in the outer rim? How is anyone from there going to find you here?"

"But how many people in the galaxy wear black and carry a red laser sword?"

"Heaps. It's probably the newest look. I might look into it myself."

"This isn't funny, LJ. Name one other person."

"Lord Vader."

"He has a red laser sword?" Luke asked, curiously.

"Yes. Besides, the Emperor swore they'd catch this Jedi who attacked us before nightfall. Lord Vader has captured hundreds of Jedi - this one won't get past him."

"I hope you're right," Luke mumbled.

Once they passed through the main doors, Luke saw what LJ meant about turning the place into a fortress. There were droid guards as well as stormtroopers now, and every person entering was being screened for weapons.

LJ released him from the binders and then kept a hand on his shoulder as he guided him through the mass of security personnel and confused visitors. Eventually they came to a stop outside the main offices, and Luke looked up in confusion.

"I thought you were taking me to the decontamination showers."

"I am. I need to get some forms first. The supplies in our barracks have run out."

Luke looked down at his oil stained clothes. "I'll wait out here."

LJ didn't release him as he walked through the doors. "Nice try, buddy. Don't worry - they've seen worse."

They walked down the length of the cubicles, which were divided up into even squares, four on each side of the room. At the top was the closed door of the administrator's office. Beside it was a rack holding stacks of forms. There were at least a hundred different varieties.

LJ crouched down on one knee as he scanned the rows of forms, occasionally flicking through them.

"What is the name of it?" Luke asked, growing impatient.

"Regulation 45b, subsection 7, clause 89. They used to be pink, but I think she's changed the colors around again. She loves doing that."

"Ask her," Luke said, pointing at the office door.

"Are you kidding? I'm not disturbing the administrator over the color of a form. She'll make me get her coffee."

Luke grumbled under his breath and bent down to help LJ search. Within a minute, they had forms mixed up and scattered all over the floor, and LJ's normally unshakeable good temper was beginning to crack.

"Curse the administrator and all her hellbound forms!"

"Let's just forget it," Luke said, hastily.

"I can't forget it. If I don't file that form, she'll go crazy."

"She's already crazy. You won't notice the difference."

Approaching footsteps caused them both to look up in curiosity. It was BB-675, the protocol droid who manned the reception desk. He was followed by a man dressed in elaborate clothes and holding an official-looking black briefcase.

BB-675 turned his photo-receptors on them, looking about as distasteful as a protocol droid could look.

"You better clean up that mess and get that child out of here," the droid said. "The administrator will not be pleased."

"Shut your trap, droid," LJ said.

"Don't say I didn't warn you."

"I won't."

The man was watching this exchange with an expression of vague impatience, until he noticed Luke. Luke met his gaze for a moment, and then looked down, hastily stacking forms back into the rack. He didn't know what it was, but he didn't like the way the man was looking at him.

Suddenly, the office door opened, and the administrator stepped out, looking like she was suffering from form withdrawal.

"Is there a conference scheduled that I wasn't informed about?" she snapped. "If not, then go away from my office."

BB didn't let her tone affect him.

"Administrator, may I present the right honorable Senator Lerrod."

The senator stepped forward to shake hands, but the administrator didn't accept the offer.

"Did you have an appointment with me, Senator?"

"I do now."

"No, I'm afraid you don't. I have memorized my appointment schedule, and you are not on it."

"Now I am," the senator insisted. "I must speak with you. It's important."

"If it was important, you should have made an appointment three weeks in advance, as per regulation."

"Do you have any idea who I am?" the senator said, now appearing rattled. "I am the newly appointed representative of Coruscant in the Galactic Senate."

"And I am the administrator of the 507th branch of Imperial Family Services. Come back when you've made an appointment."

The administrator made to go back into her office, but the senator stepped forward.

"Wait. Perhaps you would be willing to speak with me if I offered you a little salary bonus. Would three hundred credits be sufficient?"

"Three hundred will get you ... oh, let me think ... three minutes of my time."

"Three minutes is all I need," the senator said, hastily writing out a credit tab.

Luke blinked in surprise, wondering whether he was supposed to be watching this. The administrator hadn't appeared to have noticed him and LJ.

"Very well. What do you want?" the administrator said, pocketing the credit tab.

"A child. Just temporarily."

"Uh huh." She leaned against the door frame, folding her arms. "You can collect the forms from the reception desk. First, there will be an evaluation to determine if you are suitable to care for a child ... that will take six months at minimum. Then, if all goes well, you can arrange a time to come in and inspect the children. After you have made a selection, the child will be released into your care after a two week stand down period, while we process the clearance forms."

"Perhaps I should rephrase," the senator said. "I need a child _now_. I want to take one home with me today."

"Do you think we are some kind of library that lends out children instead of books, Senator?"

"I'll give you six thousand."

"Six thousand might just convince me to allow you to have a look at the children -"

"I don't need to look," the senator said. He pointed a gloved finger at Luke. "That one there is fine."

Luke jumped behind LJ, suddenly frightened. He didn't want to go anywhere with this man.

The administrator glanced at them, finally noticing LJ.

"What are you doing here, Stormtrooper?" she demanded, annoyed.

"Excuse me, I just paid for three minutes of your time," the senator said, holding up a hand between the administrator and LJ. "Now do we have a deal? I'll make it ten thousand, in exchange for this child for three months."

Luke looked at the administrator's face, clinging to LJ's arm like it was a lifeline.

"That one is a trouble maker," she said. Her voice sounded slightly less disinterested, though.

"Then let me take him off your hands. This facility has attracted enough controversy without children causing you trouble. I'm sure you have much more important things to do than mind delinquent children."

She was cracking. Luke sensed with increasing horror that she was on the verge of saying yes.

"What do you want a child for, anyway?" she asked, finally. "If you are intending to place this child in danger, then -"

"Of course not. I simply require an orphaned child to participate in my political campaign. He'll live with my family and be cared for as if he were my own son."

The administrator took one last glance at Luke.

"Twenty thousand," she said, finally. "And he's yours. For three months."

"Done."

Luke watched the senator write another credit tab, feeling his head begin to spin. A political campaign? What did that mean? Where was he going to be taken?

"Stormtrooper, go and help this boy gather his belongings," she said. "I'll complete the paperwork for you, Senator."

LJ saluted and started to pull Luke towards the doors. Luke struggled against LJ's hold, looking around desperately for something solid he could latch himself to. Once in the corridor, Luke finally stopped resisting, as it wasn't doing much good.

"LJ, I don't want to go with him," Luke said, unable to keep the fear out of his voice.

"I know you don't, Luke, but you don't have a choice. Besides, it's only for three months."

"What's a political campaign?"

"I don't know. But he's a senator - that means he'll live in a big house in the middle of Imperial City. You'll like it there."

Luke felt like he was in a dream, as he entered the dorm and went over to his bed. He began to gather his things, while LJ waited nearby, watching him.

Crix and Val came rushing up as soon as they saw him.

"Luke, you're safe!"

"Did you hear about what happened?"

Luke didn't answer. He compulsively pushed his belongings into a sack, trying to gain control of his emotions.

"What's happening, Luke?" Crix asked, sounding worried.

"Are you going back into isolation?" Val asked.

Luke shook his head, unable to tell them, for fear of breaking down into tears.

"He's going to stay with a senator for three months," LJ explained.

"Adopted?"

"No. Just for three months."

"Wow, Luke, a senator!" Crix said. "You'll get to see Imperial City."

Luke zipped up his sack, which contained all his meager possessions. He looked at his bunk, suddenly wishing he could crawl into it.

"You don't want to go?" Val said, looking at Luke with concern.

"Come on," LJ said. "Say goodbye to your friends, Luke. You'll see them again."

"Yeah," Crix said, slapping him on the back. "We'll see you again. Until then, you can write to us."

"I'll miss you," Val said, hugging him.

Luke hugged her back, suddenly realizing how much these two had come to mean to him, over the few weeks they had been together. Now he might never see them again.

"I'll never forget you," Luke mumbled.

The saddest part came a short time later, when they reached the landing pad where Senator Lerrod had parked his speeder. The administrator was nowhere to be seen.

"Goodbye, Luke," LJ said, ruffling his hair. "See you in three months."

Luke looked up at his friend, his eyes wet with unshed tears, and then suddenly wrapped his arms around the stormtrooper, as far as they could reach. Then the tears began to fall, and LJ bent down to return the embrace as much as his armor could allow.

"I'll m-miss you," Luke sniffed.

"No you won't," LJ said. "You'll be having too much fun living among the rich and famous."

Luke hugged tighter, shaking his head in denial.

The goodbye was brought to an abrupt end when the senator's patience ran out. "Oh, for stars sake, it's just a stormtrooper, kid," he said, pulling Luke away by the back of his tunic. "There's one just like it who guards the street outside my home. You can make friends with him."

Luke didn't stop looking back until they'd left the landing pad far behind.

* * *


	8. A Senator's Home

* * *

**Chapter 8: A Senator's Home**

* * *

"You have news for me?" The Emperor asked, as Vader came to a halt below the throne.

Vader bowed in greeting. "The analysis of the security tapes has been completed."

"The invader was a Force user."

"Yes, my master."

Vader waited in silence. There was no doubt the Emperor already knew the reason behind this attack. It was only a matter of whether he deemed it worthy of sharing with his devoted apprentice.

It seemed he had other plans, though.

"There has been a disturbance in the Force."

"I have sensed it."

After another drawn out silence, the Emperor turned away.

"See to your duties, Lord Vader. Watch for this enemy to show himself again."

"The public expect to see a Jedi executed by sundown, Master."

"I will see to that."

Vader bowed again and turned to leave the throne room. Whatever the Emperor knew, he was keeping it to himself. Perhaps this was some kind of test.

He would not fail.

* * *

LJ had been right about the senator's home. It was big ... excessively big. It could have housed every resident of Mos Eisley with room to spare. Luke wasn't privileged with a tour, though. Once they arrived, they entered a lift and traveled down to the lowest floor.

"You'll have to stay down here," the senator explained, leading the way down the corridor. "Sorry about that. But my son - Chilee - he's not happy with your presence here. I had to agree to make sure you slept down here."

"I don't mind, sir," Luke mumbled. He didn't bother to add that even the lowest level of the senator's home was a hundred times more luxurious than any home he'd visited on Tatooine.

"You'd be best to stay out of his way. I'll have a droid bring food down to you, three times a day. If you need anything else ... databooks, perhaps, just tell a servant droid."

Luke nodded. His room was small, but adequate. At least there was no lock on the door.

The senator started to leave, but Luke spoke up.

"Sir - what's a political campaign?"

"It is a show a politician must perform for the public, in order to get votes."

"Oh," Luke said. "Um ... why do you need me for that?"

"You'll see when the time comes."

Luke watched him enter the elevator and then looked back at his room. It looked as if it had been furnished in a big hurry. The bed was of the portable, folding variety and wasn't made. Pillows and sheets were stacked at one end.

On the other side of the room was a small table and a chair. Luke placed his bag of belongings on the floor and then rummaged around for his T-16. He placed it in the middle of the table, then stepped back to admire it. For all the bareness of the room, the T-16 made it seem a little like home.

Luke turned to set about making the bed. He'd only got as far as shaking out the first sheet, though, when a distant roar caused him to jump in fright. He looked around, half expecting a Kryat dragon to come stomping down the hallway.

He followed the source of the sound, which led to the door opposite his new room. There were definitely some weird noises coming from behind those doors. It sounded like a private zoo.

Luke wondered if it was safe to open them. There was no warning notice, though, and surely if the senator was keeping some dangerous animal down here, he would have mentioned it. Luke did take care to step back as he opened the doors, however.

He was right about one thing. The long narrow room was lined with cages, as you'd expect in a private zoo. However, the living creatures behind the bars were not of the species you'd normally see in a menagerie. Luke recognized the creature in the first cage as a Wookiee. He was the one who'd be roaring earlier, and he favored Luke with another chest-shaking vocalization.

In the cage next to him, was a furry, short creature with round black eyes. It snuffled at Luke, pressing its face against the bars. There was a note stuck on its cage reading 'the Ewok is allergic to dairy products'. The third cage along that side of the wall held a spherical green ball, about the size of the Ewok's head. Luke assumed it was alive, but it could just be a cleaning sponge. Or perhaps a rare species of fungus.

"I guess you guys are my new neighbors," Luke said. "I'm stuck here too. For three months."

The Wookiee growled in answer, and Luke wondered if he could understand. Unfortunately, he couldn't speak Wookiee any more than these furballs could speak basic.

Three months was starting to seem like a very long time.

* * *

Obi-Wan arrived on Coruscant soon after 23 hundred hours, Imperial City standard time. At the docking bay, he used a mind trick to sneak through customs and borrowed a rental speeder. Bail had provided him with good directions to the Family Services facility, but it still took all Obi-Wan's concentration to find his way through the never-ending maze of buildings. It had been a long time since he'd lived here, after all. A very long time.

Coruscant had changed since then and not simply because there were towers and structures he had never seen before. The whole planet had a sense of crushing despair about it. The feeling was better suited to a prison, than a galactic capital. This was Palpatine's seat of power, and it was here that his grip was most keenly felt.

When he landed at the correct building, Obi-Wan took steps to shield himself from the eyes of many watching guards. This would take a lot of concentration, but if he succeeded, no one would even remember he was here.

After locating the Family Services facility, he dodged several teams of guards and found his way to a room with a computer terminal. It took him a few minutes to find his way around the user interface, before finally obtaining a screen where he could search for records.

His fingers were shaking slightly as he entered the word 'Luke'. He was trying to stay calm, but it was hard to forget just how high the stakes were in this matter. If Luke wasn't here ...

Three faces filled the screen. Obi-Wan slapped the desk in frustration. Three Lukes, yet none of them was the Luke he was looking for. Perhaps this entire search had been for nothing. Perhaps Luke had never been taken anywhere near Coruscant.

On the other hand, perhaps the Luke he was looking for was in fact at a child holding facility two blocks away.

"Don't move!"

Obi-Wan looked up. A stormtrooper had entered the room and was holding a blaster pointed right at him.

"I work here," Obi-Wan said, waving his hand slightly, under the desk.

"You work here," the trooper repeated, lowering his rifle.

"You're doing a good job, soldier. Be on your way."

"Thank you."

The trooper left and Obi-Wan stood up. Time to make a hasty exit.

* * *

Deep in meditation, Vader observed the ripples in the Force, spreading from a single locus point. As they spread, they grew larger, gaining momentum as they flowed towards some unseen edge. It was almost peaceful.

Then, without any prior warning, the previously rippling surface was shattered into an imploding mass of energy. Vader became tense, shaking slightly with the force of it. When it finally began to settle, there was a new presence, occupying a space not far from the original locus.

_Obi-Wan_.

* * *

After a few uneventful days staying at the Lerrod mansion, Luke was starting to think it was more boring living here than at Family Services. There were advantages though, not least of which was the absence of locks. He had left the lower level twice already.

The first time was out of pure curiosity. That had quickly been sated as he explored room after boring room which all looked identical. The second was to borrow a lightpen and datapad from the desk in the library. He had decided to pass the time by writing to LJ, Crix and Val.

Afterwards, he had withdrawn to his room and started putting his experiences into words.

_Dear Crix, Vallie, and LJ-151,_

_I've been staying with the senator for several days now. Like you told me, his house is in the heart of Imperial City and is very large. I haven't seen all of it, though. My room is in the lowest level, and I don't leave it much. The senator told me it's better that I stay down here, because his son is angry that I'm staying here. I haven't met his son yet, and I don't think I want to._

_I still don't know why I'm here. I'm starting to get lonely. I'd like to go and wander around Imperial City for a while and see all the sights, but I'm worried about all the stormtroopers. They're everywhere! I don't think they'd believe me if I told them I was staying with a senator. I'm still wearing those ugly gray tracksuits with Family Services printed on the back._

_I can hear someone coming, so I better sign off. I will write again._

Luke shuffled off his bed and opened the door. A droid was approaching.

"It's not eating time, is it?" Luke asked.

"The senator wishes to see you. Follow me."

Luke was curious. Was he about to find out why he was here?

The droid led him up to one of the higher levels, where Luke had not had an opportunity to explore. He had suspected that this was where the senator and his family were most often found, and his idea was proved correct. They passed several important looking advisors, before coming to a halt outside a guarded room. The droid pressed the door-comm and then gestured for Luke to enter.

Luke took a deep breath and did so. On the other side of the doors was the senator's office. It was a comfortable room in creamy tones, with a cabinet full of databooks lining the wall behind the desk. The senator looked up as Luke stepped forward and then glanced to his right.

Luke followed his gaze and found himself looking at a boy who was a younger version of the senator. He was glaring at Luke like he'd stepped on his toe.

"Father, you said I wouldn't have to see him!"

"Boy, why won't you wait outside for a moment," the senator suggested to Luke, pointing back towards the doors.

Luke was glad to, but he was prevented by the senator's son, who pushed past him roughly.

"No, let _me_ be the one to leave! I wouldn't want to interfere with your _quality_ time together!"

He kicked over a pot plant by the door, spilling dirt all over the creamy white carpet. The stomping could still be heard, even after the doors had closed.

"Now, let's get on with business, shall we?" the senator said, standing up. He appeared completely relaxed about the display they'd just witnessed, as if it was a regular occurrence. "In a few days time, the Imperial Court will be gathering and, naturally, I am invited. You will be accompanying me."

Luke's eyes grew wide, wondering if he'd heard right. The Imperial Court? Did that mean what he thought it meant? The most important people in the galaxy, all in one place?

"You will not be required to do much. Just stand there and look shy and pathetic. Much how you look right now."

Luke frowned.

"There is a possibility the media - that's the journalists and reporters - may ask you a few questions on our way in. You will tell them you are grateful to me for adopting you, and before I was kind enough to take you in, you struggled to find enough to eat. Can you remember that, or should I write it down for you?"

Luke's annoyance over the pathetic remark had disappeared, in wake of his disbelief. "You've adopted me, sir? I thought I was only staying here for three months."

"Of course, but the media don't know that, do they?"

"And it wasn't nice living at Family Services, but they didn't starve us. We didn't get dessert, though. But I didn't always get dessert back on the farm, either, so I didn't mind that."

The senator had begun to pace. "I don't think you understand me, boy. I'm not asking you for the details of your mundane existence. I'm telling you what you will say to the media."

"You want me to lie to them?"

"Exactly."

"But isn't that wrong?" Luke asked.

"No. Politicians do it all the time. We have to, in order to convince people to vote for us. Sometimes lying is necessary. Understand?"

Luke wasn't sure if he did, but he nodded anyway. If the senator didn't mind lying to other people, then he wouldn't mind if Luke lied to him, either.

"Now, do you remember what you are to tell the media?"

"That I'm grateful to you for adopting me and that they starved us at Family Services."

"No! Don't say it like that - IFS is an Imperial institution. If you imply they starve children, that will reflect badly on the Empire."

"I thought you told me to -"

"Change of plan," the senator said. "You will not speak at all - to anyone. You will let me do the talking. I will be bringing an assistant with me to the gathering. You will stay with him at all times - except when I require you for something."

Luke nodded.

"I'll send someone to come and get you when the time comes." He waved Luke away, but Luke still had a question.

"Sir ... um, I don't have any clothes other than these Family Services uniforms. Do you want me to wear them to this party?"

"Yes - those are perfect."

Luke was surprised. Aunt Beru would never have let him wear clothes like this at an important gathering. He wasn't going to argue, though.

* * *

Obi-Wan looked up at the sound of a gentle tap on the door of his room. He stretched out to be sure of the identity of his visitor and then used the Force to open the door. His longtime friend Dexster Jettster filled the entranceway, carrying two trays and glasses.

"Oh, Dex," Obi-Wan sighed, reaching up to assist. "You didn't have to go to all this trouble."

"For my old friend, Obi?" Dex set out the trays and tossed Obi-Wan a fork. "I'd go to the seven hells of Corellia and back. I've missed you, old buddy. I never imagined you'd be still alive."

"I've missed you too, Dex. And I never imagined you'd still be running this place."

Dex chuckled, pausing only to take a large gulp of water. "They'd have to crush me with one of their walking war machines before they'd get me out of here. Now, tell me about this boy you're after. Maybe I've seen him."

Obi-Wan shook his head. He began to eat, beginning to realize just how hungry he was.

"He is Anakin's son."

"Anakin had a son? I thought you Jedi were, you know ..."

"He was secretly married to a senator."

"You don't say!"

Obi-Wan continued to eat, thinking back on those painful memories.

"Luke has inherited his father's strength in the Force," Obi-Wan added. "I believe he is our only hope for restoring the Jedi Order."

"Then I'd say you need to get him back."

Obi-Wan nodded. He looked around at the well-kept room, wishing he could somehow see through every wall on Coruscant. Luke was behind one of them - the Force told him that much.

"Obi, if I can do anything to help -"

"I won't ask anything of you, Dex," Obi-Wan said. "And I'll be gone from here as soon as I can. I don't believe I will leave Coruscant alive."

"Now you're just being the pessimist -"

Obi-Wan raised a hand. "Vader knows that I'm here. Not _here_, exactly, but on Coruscant. I cannot hide my location from him forever."

"You managed okay for over a decade, buddy," Dex said.

Obi-Wan smiled at Dex, appreciating his good-nature. The galaxy needed people like him in times like these.

There was a noise outside, and Dex stood up, leaving half his food behind.

"Better get back to the kitchen, my friend."

"Thank you for stopping by," Obi-Wan said.

"Hey, I've got six words for you," Dex said, squeezing himself out the door.

Obi-Wan smiled indulgently.

"May the Force be with you."

* * *

"He is here," Vader repeated. "But he will not show himself."

"Patience, Lord Vader," the Emperor said. He clearly had little sympathy for Vader's frustration. "When the Force wills your confrontation, so it shall be."

"I am at a loss to understand how his presence relates to the earlier incident of the Jedi attack," Vader said, almost tempted to begin pacing. Pacing in the Emperor's throne room was an unspoken crime, however. "I have meditated on this for days and am no closer to finding an answer."

The Emperor smiled, showing half his teeth. It only served to increase Vader's frustration. Was he smiling because he knew the answer and was simply withholding it? Or was he at as much a loss as he himself was?

"May I suggest you instead spend your time meditating on the virtue of patience, Lord Vader?" the Emperor said, leaning forward slightly. "I think you may find it will serve you better in the long run."

"Yes, my master," Vader said, taking his point. But if only Obi-Wan would show himself from wherever he had taken refuge, there wouldn't be any need for patience.

Vader turned to leave. The Emperor had one last thing to say, however.

"I am sure you don't need reminding, Lord Vader. But there is a gathering of the Imperial Court tomorrow evening. We will look forward to your presence."

"Master, I -" Vader started, quickly. He trailed off, realizing it was futile. "I will look equally forward to attending." he finished, wondering when the Emperor would finally let the incident with Senator Denna go.

* * *


	9. An Imperial Court Gathering

* * *

**Chapter 9: An Imperial Court Gathering**

* * *

Luke fidgeted with his sleeve nervously, as remnants from the racket going on upstairs drifted towards him. He didn't know what was wrong with Chilee, the senator's son, but he had a feeling it was similar to the problems suffered by some of the older residents at IFS. They were so full of anger, and the only way they knew to express their feelings was by breaking things.

Luke had broken a few things out of frustration in his lifetime, but he had never been big or strong enough to do much damage. And he never stayed angry for days on end - what was the point in that? It's not like situations ever changed if all you did was get angry about them.

"I'm not going!" came another shout, emphasized with the sound of something shattering against a wall.

There was the sound of footsteps at the top of the stairs, and Luke withdrew back behind a statue.

"People are going to want to meet my son," the senator pleaded, following his son down the stairs.

"Then let them meet your _new_ son," Chilee said, pointing in Luke's direction, despite his best efforts to make himself invisible.

"He is not my son - you are. No one could ever take your place. How many times have I been over this? What am I supposed to do to prove this to you?"

Chilee swore in several different languages, and then departed the room in a noisy temper.

Luke sighed with relief, glad he hadn't been dragged any further into this.

"He will come around," the senator said, gesturing Luke to follow as he walked past. "He just needs some time alone."

Luke was surprised at his indifference. If he had ever thrown a tantrum like that with Uncle Owen, he'd have been doing extra chores for a year. Perhaps it was different with fathers and sons. The senator seemed willing to do just about anything to keep his son happy. Would his own father have treated him like that?

At the sight of the speeders on the landing pad, Luke was stirred out of his daydream.

"Wow!" Luke said, pointing at a shiny red one. "What model is that?"

His question went unanswered though. The senator was speaking with the chauffeur. Luke found himself being pulled towards another speeder, which was older, but no less luxurious.

"You'll be riding with me."

Luke looked up to see one of the senator's personal assistants. He didn't look very friendly.

"Where are we going?" Luke asked. "Who's house is the party at?"

"Get in!"

Luke sighed, and did as he was told. Adults always ignored him. How was he ever supposed to learn anything when they never answered his questions? He'd been feeling nervous about this party all afternoon, and it was steadily getting worse. He didn't like crowds. Especially crowds of adults who ignored him. The refusal of the senator to answer any of his questions was only making it worse.

"You'll stay with me," the assistant said, climbing in beside him. "Understood? And you'll not speak a word to the media."

"I know," Luke said. "He already told me."

"Make sure you listen, then."

Luke sighed, wondering for the millionth time how he'd ended up here. He'd give anything to be back on Tatooine now. Helping Uncle Owen fix the moisture vaporators, and helping Aunt Beru make cookies. He smiled at the memory.

His reminiscing disappeared in a flash when he happened to take a glance out the window. They were heading right for the Imperial Palace! The speeder passed over the huge statue of the Emperor, lit from below by revolving flood lights. Luke gaped at the sight, overwhelmed with awe.

"Why is he wearing a hood?" Luke asked, pointing at the statue. "I can't see his face."

The senator's assistant was yabbering away on a comlink, and so ignored him. To Luke's surprise, their driver spoke up.

"He always wears a hood."

"Always and always?" Luke said. "What about when he's in the shower?"

The driver chuckled. "I don't think anyone wants to picture him in the shower, kiddo."

"Land over there." The assistant pointed over the barrier, gesturing towards a nearby landing pad.

Luke was still staring at the statue.

* * *

Obi-Wan was disturbed from his meditation by a thumping, groaning mass of four-armed chef. The doors slid open, and a portable holovid entered, followed closely Dex.

"I don't need any entertainment," Obi-Wan protested. "I'm quite comfortable, Dex. I insist."

"No, you don't understand," Dex, said, bending down to plug the equipment into a power socket. His back made a varied range of clicking sounds as he straightened up. "Ah! Not as young as I used to be!"

A 2d picture formed on the projector, and Dex inserted a datatape.

"Was just watching the news channel," Dex explained, "and I saw something."

"Saw what, Dex?" Obi-Wan asked, standing up.

Dex pointed a fat finger at the image. "I cut off the start - sorry."

Obi-Wan recognized the front of the Imperial Palace. A man was being interviewed.

"Who is that?"

"The new Coruscant senator. But look beside him."

Obi-Wan leaned closer. The image was fuzzy and distorted, but that was unmistakable Luke.

"That's him!" Obi-Wan said. "How did you -?"

"Listen," Dex suggested.

"_And is this your son you've brought with you tonight_?"

"_This is an orphan I recently adopted_," the senator explained. "_When I heard about the senseless and brutal attack on the Family Services facility, I knew I had to help out in any way I could_ -"

"Funny," Obi-Wan said. "I searched the records at Family Services and could find no reference to Luke."

"This is the funny part," Dex said, pointing back at the screen. "See when he's finished his self-glorifying story, the reporter wants to know the boy's name. Look at his face."

The senator looked completely blank. Eventually, Luke tugged on his sleeve and put the poor man out of his misery.

"_Luke_!" he said. "_His name is Luke_."

"That's when I thought I better show this to you," Dex explained.

Obi-Wan nodded, turning for his lightsaber. "Thank you, Dex. I'll get over there immediately."

"Vader is there too."

"What?!" Obi-Wan looked up.

"It's the royal court gathering."

"Blast it!"

"If I were you, I'd wait until tonight," Dex said. "The senator will be taking the boy back to his home, no doubt about that."

"If Vader doesn't decide to 'adopt' him for himself."

"Now there's a picture," Dex said, grinning widely. "Vader just doesn't seem like the fatherly type."

"If he knew who he was, he'd kill him, Dex. Kill him the first chance he had. And if he didn't, the Emperor would."

Dex bowed his head, while Obi-Wan paced.

"No," Obi-Wan said. "I have to go tonight. You contact Bail - explain the situation and make sure he has a ship standing by."

"And if you fail?" Dex enquired.

"I won't."

* * *

It wasn't easy to be inconspicuous when you were two meters tall and wore a breathing mask. But Vader liked to think he was succeeding. After all, no one had approached him with the intent to make conversation yet. That could be due more to the fact that none of these guests would dare think of socializing with him, but Vader didn't mind either way. As long as he was left alone.

The room was oval in shape and designed somewhat like an amphitheatre, with staircases leading up to succeeding balconies. The guests were gathered loosely around the second level and represented a significant portion of the Emperor's court. There were notable absences, of course. There were always some of the Emperor's servants who took dangerous risks and fell out of the Emperor's favor. The Emperor took vast pleasure from leaving them off the guest list of gatherings such as this.

Vader could only wish he was among them. The Emperor knew how much he hated social occasions. They only served to remind him just how alienated he was. He suspected the true reason for his presence here was due to his master's ongoing displeasure over the choked senator.

There were ways to make everything easier, however. Vader had placed himself in a shadowy, isolated spot on the third tier, which was the closest he could get to not being at this gathering, while still technically present. It wasn't isolated enough, though. A droid was approaching.

"May I get you a drink, sir?" it inquired politely. "We are about to have a toast."

Vader wondered if anyone would notice if he introduced the droid to the blade end of his lightsaber. It was tempting, but the guests below him may not appreciate flaming droid debris bouncing in their midst.

The droid was saved by the sound of a glass being tapped. Down below, on the lowest level, a man stepped up to the podium in the center of the oval stage. So, this was the new senator the Emperor wished him to meet.

Vader instantly despised him. He couldn't stand politicians in general, dishonorable and lying bunch that they were, but this appeared to be an especially revolting example of one. At least Senator Denna had openly presented himself as self-interested tyrant. Lerrod had taken less than a week to convince the populace he was a philanthropic saint.

"I would like to propose a toast," he announced. "To the Emperor and our great and glorious Empire!"

The guests repeated the words and drunk deeply.

Lerrod smiled, sweeping his eyes around all the guests.

"Tonight we are here to celebrate the future of the Empire."

He paused dramatically.

"But first, let us take the time to reflect on our past ..."

The man had barely said two sentences and already Vader was bored. He wondered how long the speech was. Perhaps he could slip out, take a walk, and be back before anyone noticed -

A sudden ripple in the Force snared his attention. He quickly scanned the room, searching for the source. It had felt ... almost familiar somehow. Almost, but not quite. It must have been an echo. He was getting overly sensitive, with random Jedi appearing one moment and Obi-Wan around the next. He really should -

Then Vader saw it. Bright blue eyes. Directly opposite him, staring through the railing of the balcony on the opposite side of the room. It was a child. Not merely a child, but a Force-sensitive one, at that. A rare thing these days, a very rare thing. Curious indeed ...

The guests suddenly burst into loud applause and Vader looked down. Lerrod was still droning on with his never-ending speech. Perhaps the guests had misinterpreted another dramatic pause for the end.

Vader glanced up to resume his observation of the boy, but found he had disappeared.

He briefly entertained the thought of going after him, but then decided against it. He was probably the son of one of the guests - a guest who was too stupid to realize that children were not invited to this event. Or, more likely, they believed _their_ child was an exception.

It never failed to amaze Vader, the number of parents who believed the galaxy revolved around their child. If that's what parenthood did to a person, Vader was glad he would never be inflicted with _that_ particular condition.

* * *

The second Luke had stepped out of the speeder, he had been overwhelmed with the flashes, the crowds, and most of all, the endless questions being shouted at him from all directions. This was worse than he had ever imagined it.

As soon as they were inside, away from the media, Luke had broken away from his minder and ran to hide. He didn't care if he got in trouble afterwards. He'd rather be back at IFS, than this.

Hiding wasn't easy, though, with guards at every exit and entrance. He took his chances with one who was distracted by an adult asking questions and managed to slip through onto a balcony, looking down on the party.

A couple of times, he saw the senator's assistant wandering around looking for him, and he chuckled to himself. He'd never find him up here.

It wasn't until he happened to look across that he realized he was sharing this floor with someone. If it hadn't been for that old newsfax Val had shown him, he wouldn't have had the slightest idea who it was. But one picture had been enough to etch his image into Luke's mind forever. Darth Vader.

Luke crept up to the balcony, careful to stay down low. Vader looked a lot scarier in real life than he had in that picture. He was tall, even taller than LJ and the other stormtroopers. There were funny flashing lights and buttons on his chest.

Then, he tilted his masked head upwards and looked straight at Luke. Luke met his gaze for one terrifying moment, and then he turned and ran as fast as he could. He didn't need to meet that man to know he didn't like children.

* * *

Obi-Wan couldn't help but think of Anakin, as he sped and dodged his way in and out of the Coruscant traffic lanes.

_Sorry, Master. I forgot you don't like flying._

_I don't mind flying, but what you're doing is suicide!_

Anakin had been determined, then. He always was when someone he cared about was in danger. If only he was here right now - he could certainly use his help.

_Isn't that the problem, though?_

Obi-Wan shook his head, suppressing the thought. He had long ago given up on making that connection in his mind. It was simply too painful. Nothing of the compassionate, caring apprentice he had raised remained in Vader. To think of Vader as Anakin was a disservice to everything Anakin had believed in.

It hurt, though. It hurt to have to hide Luke from him like this, even if Vader didn't retain the spirit of the man who had fathered the boy. He would like him to at least see how much Luke had inherited, from both his parents.

Obi-Wan continued to think on these lines, as he came ever closer to the Imperial Palace. He would regret his distraction, later. It was a critical mistake.

He didn't even see it coming until it was too late. A black shadow, flying out of the sky, lightsaber ignited. Obi-Wan jumped up to face him, but the attacker already had the advantage of surprise. Obi-Wan was hit in the chest by a powerful Force push, one which sent him tumbling over the side of the speeder.

Then he was falling down, down ... and this time, Anakin wouldn't be waiting to pick him up.

* * *

There was a black feeling in the Lerrod mansion the next morning. No droid arrived to give Luke breakfast, and in the end, out of sheer hunger, he'd gone up to the upper levels in search of food. That was a mistake, though. In his search for the kitchen, he'd ended up in the corridor where Chilee had his bedroom.

At the sight of him, Luke turned, intending to run, but Chilee surprised him by actually sounding halfway pleasant.

"Hey, wait."

Luke paused and glanced over his shoulder. Chilee was dressed in some kind of uniform, with a logo across the tunic.

"What's your name?"

He stepped closer, and Luke realized it was a school uniform. He hadn't been to school since Tatooine. He never thought he'd feel this way, but he actually missed it.

"Luke."

"And you don't have parents, right?"

Luke looked around uncomfortably. "Can you tell me where the kitchen is?" he asked.

"Sure," Chilee said. "It's right over there." He pointed to his right.

Luke started to move, but Chilee stuck out a leg, causing Luke to trip. He then felt Chilee's foot stand on his arm, leaving Luke trapped against the floor.

"Dad said you were hiding at the party last night," Chilee said. "What a cowardly wimp!"

Luke struggled to pull his arm away, but Chilee pressed down harder.

"Chilee?!"

Luke looked up from the floor to see the senator, stepping into view at the other end of the corridor. Luke had never felt so relieved to see him.

But instead of coming to his aid, he ignored him.

"Son, have you seen my comlink?" he said, coming closer.

"Try the dining room. I borrowed it to call my friend."

"Thanks," he said, patting his son on the back. He turned to leave, and Chilee took the opportunity to give Luke a kick for good measure. He then ran off, leaving Luke fuming. He stood up, brushing off the fluff from the carpet.

The senator, upon hearing his son leave, returned to where Luke was standing.

"I told you to stay away from him, boy," he said, waving a finger at Luke.

"Luke!" Luke shouted, on the verge of losing his temper. "My name is _Luke_!"

He expected the senator to react angrily, but instead he snapped his fingers.

"Yes, I have to remember that one. Nearly got caught out last night!"

"I'm not going to any more parties," Luke said, rubbing his arm. It would be bruised tomorrow.

"No parties today. Today I'm going to see the Emperor. You can come too, in case there's another media opportunity. Last night could have gone better. A lot better."

"The Emperor?" Luke repeated. This was getting more surreal by the day. A few weeks ago he and his friends had been joking about the Emperor - now he was actually going to be meeting him?

"You will be waiting outside," the senator explained, bringing an end to Luke's surprise.

"Can you show me where the kitchen is?" Luke asked. "I haven't had breakfast."

"Sorry, no time," he replied, walking away. "We're leaving in five minutes - go and wait on the landing pad."

Luke was in two minds about running off into the city instead. Part of him was at least a little curious about getting near to the Emperor, though. It would be a good story to tell Crix and Val, at least. LJ would be envious.

As long as that Darth Vader person wasn't around.

* * *


	10. Dying Principles

* * *

**Chapter 10: Dying Principles**

* * *

"The party went well last night, wouldn't you agree?" the Emperor asked, conversationally.

Vader stared at the Emperor, wondering if there was a point to this question. He had hoped, when he had received this summons, that the Emperor had information about Obi-Wan for him.

"Yes, my master," Vader replied, hoping to conceal his impatience.

"What is your opinion of the points Senator Lerrod raised during his speech? Their ramifications for our future are great."

Vader thought back to last night, trying to shed some light on what the Emperor was referring to. Perhaps he should have paid more attention.

The Emperor continued, saving Vader from thinking of a reply. "Perhaps the immediate future is of more importance to you."

The Emperor turned, staring out the window overlooking the city.

"My master?" Vader enquired. Had the Emperor had a vision? Perhaps he had discovered Obi-Wan's location. If so, why did he not just tell him? Why this skimming around the point?

They were interrupted by the sound of the throne room doors hissing open. Vader turned and found himself looking at the grinning Senator Lerrod. In a blaze of anger, he was about to rebuke him, when the Emperor spoke up.

"Greetings Senator Lerrod! Congratulations on your speech last night. Many of my servants have spoken of its eloquence and dramatic delivery."

"Thank you, my Emperor," Lerrod said, bowing as he walked forward to join them. "I learned from the best - my predecessor."

"Ah yes, the late Senator Denna," the Emperor said. He didn't look at Vader, but it felt as if he had.

Meanwhile, Lerrod continued his meaningless banter with the Emperor, leaving Vader stewing with impatience. He glared at Lerrod, considering all the ways he would like to kill him. He was stirred out of these murderous thoughts when he heard his name mentioned.

"Perhaps Lord Vader could give you a tour of the _Royal Arrowhead_ now?"

"That would be an honor, if Lord Vader isn't busy, of course?" Lerrod said, smiling at Vader.

Tour? Of the _Royal Arrowhead_? The _Royal Arrowhead_ was one of the Emperor's newest luxury liners. So far, only the most favored of the Emperor's servants had been allowed on board. Certainly no mere politicians. Why would the Emperor start with Lerrod? And now, of all times.

"I am quite sure Lord Vader is not busy. I, however, must attend to more pressing matters."

"Of course, your highness," Lerrod said, bowing again.

Vader couldn't even muster the words to protest. Surely, he had been punished enough, without having to babysit an irritating politician? The Emperor had begun to walk towards a side exit, trailed closely by the royal guards. It was clear this wasn't up for discussion, and Vader was left with no choice but to make an exit. Lerrod trotted along behind, like a bantha after its master.

Vader was angry, so angry he almost bumped into a child, waiting outside the outer doors to the throne room. He glared down, about to push the boy out of the way, but found himself staring at two blue eyes. It was the boy from the party. His eyes were wide with terror, and he appeared frozen to the spot.

Lerrod rushed in front, breaking the contact.

"Get out of the way, boy!"

The normally smiling Lerrod surprised Vader with the anger in his tone. He didn't seem the type to be yelling at children. The boy scurried away, clearly terrified. The senator turned to Vader, the smile back on his face, and the picture of good nature.

"My deepest apologies, Lord Vader."

"Your son?" Vader inquired, curious. It would be cruel twist of fate if a two-faced, bootlicking politician like Lerrod should have a Force-sensitive son. He glanced over at the boy again, who was now staring at him from behind a nearby statue. He was certainly strong in the Force - even clearer now that they were in such close proximity. But not much else, unfortunately. Short, skinny, and the scruffy clothes did not help.

Lerrod laughed. "No, no. My son is at school right now."

Vader waited, expecting to be further enlightened. He was certainly curious to know why an aristocrat like Lerrod was in the company of such a poorly cared for child.

"So, which way to the hangar?" Lerrod said, making a show of looking around, "I'm always getting lost in this place. It is rather large, after all, isn't it?"

Vader glanced between Lerrod and the boy, wondering if he should press the matter. The senator clearly did not wish to discuss it, and Vader had no real reason to demand an explanation. He could always ask one of his spies to investigate afterwards. The less time he spent with Lerrod the better. Vader began to walk, as fast as he possibly could. Lerrod had to jog to keep up with him.

When they reached the hangar bay containing the Emperor's personal shuttles, Lerrod finally shut up long enough for Vader to get a word in. He had been droning on about the latest gossip from the senate, despite Vader's obvious lack of interest.

"Is the boy coming with us?" Vader asked.

"Boy, my lord?" Lerrod asked.

Vader swept his gloved hand behind them. The boy was partially hiding behind a tank of starship fuel, but he needn't have bothered. His presence was like a blaring fire alarm to Vader.

"Ah. Excuse me a moment." Lerrod walked over to the boy's location and dragged him further out of earshot.

Not out of the range of the Force however. Vader enhanced his hearing ...

"I don't know my way back to the landing pad!" the boy was whining.

"For stars sake! One would think, after paying twenty thousand credits, I could have got a child with at least half a brain!"

"You're the one who made me come here with you!" the boy protested, "Why couldn't I wait in the speeder?"

"Get out of here before Lord Vader loses his patience!"

Lerrod gave the boy a push, and the boy made a swift dash for the doors. The senator then returned to Vader, once again smiling in his irritating way.

"My apologies again, my lord. Kids! They can be a handful." Lerrod laughed.

Vader was anything but amused. He didn't know exactly what the senator had referred to when he mentioned paying twenty thousand, and for Lerrod's sake, he hoped it wasn't what he thought it meant.

"What, exactly, is your relationship with that boy?" Vader asked, pointing a finger at Lerrod's chest.

"Ah," Lerrod stuttered, eyeing the finger. "It's ... it's a long story. Perhaps I should explain during our journey into orbit?"

Vader nodded, once. Without a word, he boarded the shuttle and went to inform the pilot of their destination.

* * *

Luke wandered through the palace, staring around him in awe. Everywhere there were tall pillars, high ceilings, massive sparkling windows. Statues of the Emperor appeared at regular intervals, as did all kinds of wall hangings and sculptures.

He heard footsteps and quickly hid himself behind an open doorway. Across the other side of the hall, a man in a purple robe passed by, holding a stack of old-fashioned books. Luke breathed out in relief and then resumed his meandering along the corridor. It was silly to hide, in a way. After all, he'd just come face to mask with Lord Vader. No one else could possibly be as scary as him.

Still, he wasn't taking any risks.

As he came around another corner, he was so busy looking around for a signpost, that he bumped into a pedestal. The porcelain jug on top rattled back and forth, causing Luke to dive forward to prevent it from crashing. It was a full minute before he stopped shaking - the thing was probably worth a million credits and he had nearly broken it!

Luke looked around nervously, seeing an entire corridor of expensive looking art. How did a boy from a farm on Tatooine end up among all this?

He was not the only one to wonder that, because he was soon approached by one of the red-robed Royal Guards.

The guard didn't say anything, he simply stared down from what seemed like a great height to Luke. His helmet was so shiny, Luke could almost see a reflection of himself. His eyes wandered to the left, and he saw the guard was holding some kind of spear-like weapon. It looked very sharp.

"Um," Luke said, finally, "I'm trying to find my way to the landing pad. I came in with Senator Lerrod, but he went off with Lord Vader and told me to find my own way back. Now I'm lost. Could you help me?"

The guard remained silent.

"Maybe I should ask someone else," Luke said, stepping backwards.

"You are Senator Lerrod's son?"

The strange sound of the words through the guard's helmet caused Luke to jump. He sounded a little like LJ did, yet more distorted.

"No," Luke said, wondering why everyone was always mistaking him for Chilee. "I'm staying with the senator for a few months. He needed me for his political campaign."

"I see," the guard said, sounding a little amused, for no reason Luke could understand.

"I didn't mean to get lost," Luke said, "It's just that ... I've never been here before, and ... I've only been on Coruscant for a short time, and my old planet was nothing like -"

The guard raised a red-gloved hand. "Come with me," he said, patting Luke on the shoulder.

* * *

Vader didn't bother to sit down as he entered the passenger compartment. He stood just inside the door, ensuring a quick escape route, should Lerrod's personality exceed his tolerance levels. In his absence, the senator had helped himself to the shuttle's alcohol supply and was reclining on one of the couches.

He became aware of Vader's return and looked up, smiling. "We should be docking in a few minutes, then?"

Vader ignored his question. "The boy."

Finally, he stopped smiling. "Ah, yes. It all started when I saw the news footage of the Jedi attack ... just the thought of all those poor kids without parents to take care of them. It broke my heart! So I thought 'here am I, with all my wealth, the least I could do would be to take one of these poor, lost souls into my home and care for them'."

He paused to take another sip of his drink, and Vader felt like he was expected to burst into applause. No wonder the Emperor had chosen Lerrod to make the speech the other night. He continued to divulge his story in the heart-felt tone.

"So I went in to investigate and they say, 'Sir, we've got a boy here who keeps running away and getting into trouble. He'll end up in juvenile prison if we don't find a home for him soon. Everyone has turned us down so far.' So what could I say? I had some reservations about having a delinquent child in my home, and my wife wasn't too impressed, to say the least. But I thought, don't we all deserve another chance? Don't we all just need a leg up now and then? So I agreed to take him."

Vader's mind was spinning at this news. So the boy had come from Family Services ... could it be a coincidence that the very same facility had been attacked by a Force-user a week earlier? They were after the Force-sensitive child!

"Who were the boy's parents?" Vader asked.

Lerrod shrugged. "I'm not sure, my lord."

Vader was willing to bet his life the boy had been sired by a Jedi. The boy appeared young enough to have been born after the purge began ... perhaps the remaining exiled Jedi had made the decision to reproduce, to restore their flagging numbers.

Vader walked over to the viewport, contemplating the planet below. They were out there, somewhere. Planning to raise these new padawans to bring down the Empire.

Obi-Wan and this other Jedi had come to Coruscant to retrieve the boy. But something had foiled their plan, or they would have taken the boy already. Perhaps they didn't dare risk a strike while the boy was in such close proximity to the Sith.

Lerrod had been droning on in the meantime, and Vader resumed listening.

"It hasn't been easy, adjusting to life with a new member of the family. But I know it will be worth it in the end."

"I wouldn't get too attached to the boy, if I were you," Vader said, more to the window than to Lerrod.

"Do you have an objection to his presence, my lord? If so, I will of course return him to the Family Services facility immediately -"

Vader didn't bother to explain. The senator would likely faint if he told him the boy would have to be killed. Politicians never did like getting their hands dirty.

When, was another question. Now that he knew Obi-Wan's plans, perhaps he could use the boy as bait, to draw out the remaining Jedi.

"Sounds like we're here!" Lerrod said, cheerily, as the clunk and bang of the landing struts filled the ship.

"Unfortunately," Vader mumbled. In many ways. He should be on Coruscant, finalizing this plan with the Emperor. But if he presented himself in the throne room, without having given Lerrod this tour ... it was always better to give a new proposal the best possible environment before introducing it. Especially where the Emperor was concerned.

"Move quickly," Vader ordered, exiting the passenger lounge without looking back.

* * *

"You seem so normal," Luke said, staring at the now helmet-less guard. After accompanying him to the nearest landing pad, they had loaded into a black speeder marked with the Imperial icon. His new friend had removed his helmet to pilot the speeder, revealing a 30ish bearded man with black hair.

"Should I take that as a compliment?" he asked, glancing over at Luke.

"No ... I mean, well I didn't mean it as an insult. I didn't mean to say you were boring."

"It's okay if you do," he replied. "My son thinks I'm boring. He's around your age."

"You have a son?" Luke said, surprised. "This is what I mean. You don't think of guards as having families. Maybe I'm just used to the stormtroopers - they don't even have proper names."

"Oh, we have proper names. They're generally kept secret, though. Except to our fellow guards."

"Can you tell me?" Luke said, grinning.

"I could ... but then I'd have to kill you."

Luke stopped smiling and stared in shock.

"I'm just kidding," he said, smiling, "Sephan Jarnet, captain of the fourteenth squadron of the royal guard. And you are?"

"Luke Skywalker."

"An unusual name."

Luke nodded. "My mother named me," Luke said, "At least, that's what my aunt told me."

"You never knew your parents?"

Luke shook his head, sadly.

"That's too bad."

They were dropping out of the traffic, and Luke was looking at the senator's mansion in disgust. He didn't want to go back there. But he didn't particularly want to be out here, either.

"Thank you for the ride," Luke said, as they set down.

"You're welcome. Perhaps I'll see you over at the palace again."

"No way!" Luke said, "I'm not going back there! I nearly bumped into Lord Vader, and I nearly broke an expensive vase! That place and me don't mix!"

"I happened to like it," Captain Jarnet said, smiling. "Goodbye, Luke. Meeting you was an _unusual_ experience in my otherwise normal day."

Luke stepped out onto the landing pad, grinning at the guard's words. He waved goodbye until the speeder was no longer in sight.

* * *

"Obi-Wan?"

Obi-Wan rubbed his head, feeling like he'd been sleeping for several days. He opened his eyes and found several sets looking back at him.

"He's coming around."

"It's about time."

"Shhh!"

A hand was placed on his chest, and he felt waves of healing flow through his body, helping him call on the Force to strengthen him. He waited until he was fully aware and then sat up, suddenly.

There were no weapons pointed at him. Only concerned gazes. Except one, which he recognized as belonging to the Lars' murderer.

"Who are you?" he demanded.

The one who had spoken first pulled back her brown hood.

"Isel?" He smiled in recognition of the Saslum Jedi healer. "Isel Arperh. I had no idea you were still alive."

"I can say the same about you, Master Obi-Wan," Isel said, reaching out to pat his shoulder.

Obi-Wan cast his eyes around the other two in the group, not recognizing them. Judging by their ages, they wouldn't have been more than 8 or 9 at the time of Palpatine's takeover. Their presence in the Force was weak, barely stronger than that of a non-Jedi. Perhaps that was why they had managed to survive.

Obi-Wan looked past his companions and saw they were in some kind of cave, hollowed out of a dark gray metamorphic rock. A stream bubbled away nearby, cutting through the rocks at the top of the cavern and flowing out at the lower end. He could see no other entrance or exit to this place.

Before him, his nemesis stood up and drew back his hood. His gray head was shaped like a squashed triangle, and his eyes were of the large, compounded variety. Now that he could see him in the light, he was vaguely recognizable to Obi-Wan. He believed he was knighted shortly before Anakin.

In the Sectoid symbol of greeting, he extended all six abdominal appendages from the folds of his robe. It appeared the one Obi-Wan had sliced off on Tatooine had since grown back.

"We meet properly at last, Master Kenobi," he said, in the same raspy, hissing tone Obi-Wan had heard on the night of the Lars' murder. "I am Murzil Tis, former padawan of Master Lee Yanbur."

"I fought with Master Yanbur in the in the Battle of Konopal," Obi-Wan said, "He was a dedicated Jedi of unswerving faith. How would he feel to know his former padawan had become a murderer?"

"Grateful that he was a good enough master to prevent his padawan from turning traitor," came the sneering reply.

"Stop it!" Isel said, standing between them, "Tis, who did you kill?"

"A pair of innocent farmers, while they slept in their beds," Obi-Wan supplied.

"It was necessary to retrieve the boy," Tis replied, "Besides, they resisted. I would have let them sleep if they hadn't started screaming."

"Resisted," Obi-Wan repeated, "Fancy that. You were going to kill their nephew!"

"I was never going to kill the boy."

Obi-Wan rolled his eyes, but Isel spoke up in his defense.

"Our plan was to train the boy," she said, turning to Obi-Wan, "We need a Jedi, a _strong_ Jedi, to defeat Palpatine and Vader. Many have tried, but all have fallen."

Obi-Wan nodded. He had thought along similar lines himself.

"Who better than the son of Anakin Skywalker?" Isel continued, "We all know Anakin was one of the strongest Jedi the order had ever seen. He may be injured now, but he is still powerful. Only someone of Luke's strength will be able to defeat Vader in combat."

"Your plan is sound," Obi-Wan admitted, "But he was never yours to train. Owen and Beru Lars were his rightful guardians - it was their choice, and they said no. I was watching over the boy until he reached an age where he could decide for himself. Jedi do not steal children from their guardians!"

"The Jedi are all but dead and you want to talk rules?!" Tis replied.

"No, I want to talk principles," Obi-Wan said, "What is the point in restoring the Jedi if we violate all the values we stood for?" He looked up at Isel. "You agree with what he's done?"

She shook her head, turning away. "I don't know anymore," she said. "It's been a decade since the Empire was born, and we have made no progress. If we wish to succeed against the Sith, perhaps we must become as ruthless as they are."

Obi-Wan shook his head, feeling like a cloud had been cast over his mind. If even a Jedi healer could be corrupted like this, perhaps there was no hope for any of them.

"Where are we?" he asked, feeling suddenly old.

"We are not on Coruscant," Tis said, "We are in a secret location. You are our prisoner."

"Of course," Obi-Wan replied, dryly.

"You will be free to go once we have the boy. Unless you wish to stay and help us train him, of course. Still, given your track record with Skywalkers, a few years in your presence and we might have another Vader on our hands."

"That would be more desirable than what you will do with him," Obi-Wan said, "At least Vader doesn't pretend to be a Jedi."

With a sweep of his black robe, Tis suddenly drew his lightsaber and stepped menacingly towards Obi-Wan.

"No!" Isel said, again jumping in the way, "Give him a chance to change his mind!"

There was a tension-filled moment, and then the blade was switched off.

"Very well. I will be making another attempt to retrieve the boy soon. If all goes well, I will bring him back with me, and then we will decide what to do with our unwelcome visitor."

He dived into the stream and did not resurface. As Obi-Wan had suspected, the entrance to this place must be on the other side of the water.

"You're not unwelcome," Isel said, sitting back down beside Obi-Wan. "We always welcome Jedi here. I fear we are the last of them, though."

"If we are the last, then it is even more vital that we stick to our principles," Obi-Wan said. "I can't allow him to train Luke. He will teach him to hate Vader and Palpatine as much as he does."

Isel shook her head, sadly. "The Dark Side is strong, Obi-Wan. The Jedi are not."

Obi-Wan lay down to rest, fearing that Isel might just be right.

* * *


	11. Wiser Not To Get Attached

* * *

**Chapter 11: Wiser Not to Get Attached**

* * *

Luke was sitting on an upturned bucket in the cage room, staring blankly at the datapad on his lap. The 'pets' were munching on the leftovers from his dinner. He wasn't hungry. Things had become a lot worse since the incident at the palace. The senator was clearly beginning to regret his decision to bring him here, and he was showing it in subtle ways.

Luke had only been allowed out of the lower rooms for an hour yesterday afternoon when a technical crew had arrived to record something for the HoloNet news. Chilee had watched the entire thing, eyeing him with an unnerving jealous gaze. Afterwards, he was glad to withdraw to his room and have some peace.

Tonight he was trying to finish another letter to LJ, Crix, and Val, but it wasn't going well. It was hard to write truthfully about his experiences without sounding overly miserable. And he didn't want to upset them. He picked up his pen and began a new paragraph.

_I met Lord Vader a few days ago. Although, I didn't really 'meet' him, I was standing in the wrong place and he nearly bumped into me. He's a lot taller in real life than he looks in the pictures. Luckily, he didn't say anything to me because I wouldn't have known what to say back._

_Yesterday, we filmed something for the HoloNet news which I overheard was part of the _

Luke stared at the ceiling, wondering how to spell political campaign. Eventually, he resumed, deciding to go with an easier option.

_senator's plan to get more votes. I wish I could see it, but I don't think he'd let me. The senator seems annoyed at me, but I don't know why._

Luke heard a noise out in the corridor and quickly let the datapad fall to the floor. It wasn't time for a meal, so who could be visiting him?

He walked quietly across the room and crouched down with his ear to the door. Footsteps ... they sounded human! He was about to stand up when the door slid open with a whoosh. Luke tumbled forward onto the carpet.

When rough hands grabbed him and shoved him against the wall, Luke didn't even need to look up to know who his unwelcome visitor was. Chilee.

"I told you not to feed them!" he yelled. "They're _my_ pets!"

Luke struggled against Chilee's hold, but it was useless. Chilee was older, stronger, and bigger.

"They're not pets!" Luke yelled back. "They're people!"

Chilee shifted his hand up to Luke's throat and pressed him harder against the wall. "Dad says you embarrassed him in front of Lord Vader at the palace."

"So?!" Luke spat, attempting to kick Chilee in the shins. It didn't hurt him, though, as he was wearing thick padded boots.

"So - you know what Vader does to people? He chokes them. Like this."

Chilee tightened his grip, and Luke struggled to breathe. He stared into Chilee's eyes, seeing only a sadistic type of pleasure. Luke felt fear rise up in his chest. There was no one around, no one to help him. Chilee was so angry, so crazy ...

Just when Luke thought he was really going to strangle him, Chilee suddenly let go. Luke fell to the floor in a daze. Chilee's laughter sounded muted as if he was hearing it through a comlink. The blurry image of six hands were reaching down to grab him.

Without thinking, Luke kicked out and sent Chilee staggering backwards. It gave him the much needed moment to recover from his lack of oxygen. Encouraged by his momentary success, Luke jumped to his feet and held his fists ready.

Far from ready to back down, an enraged Chilee charged back into the fight, smashing both of them into the wall. Luke had been in fights before, in the schoolyard on Tatooine, but never against an opponent so angry. Chilee swung his fists wildly at Luke, not caring if they hit their target or cracked into the wall. One finally slipped through Luke's defenses and hit him viciously in the face.

Luke felt his nose begin to bleed and something inside him snapped. He felt a surge of energy fill the air around him, and he hit back at Chilee, pushing all this new found energy into a weapon. When he finally managed to focus again, he was still standing, but his opponent had fallen against the wall at the other end of the corridor. He'd been thrown about ten meters.

Luke stared in surprise. Had he done that?

Chilee began to stir, and Luke didn't stick around to wonder about it. He took one last look at his fallen opponent and then ran for the elevator as fast as his battered body could carry him.

* * *

The disturbance was enough to shake Vader out of his meditative trance, in his private chamber in the depths of his Coruscant dwelling. The tremor was strong, yes, but also raw, unfocused ... it could possibly be a random fluctuation, rather than evidence of any real Jedi activity. It wasn't Obi-Wan; he could detect that much. Obi-Wan would never use the Force like that.

Strangely, he had not felt anything of his former master for over a week now. He had gone to ground and disappeared as if he'd never been here in the first place. Perhaps he never _had_ been here in the first place, and his former apprentice was finally beginning to lose his mind, after all these years trapped in a mask. His younger self always used to complain that Obi-Wan would drive him crazy one day. Perhaps it had finally happened ...

A noise disturbed Vader, and he noticed he had left one of his computer terminals resting on a HoloNet news channel. A close-up image of Senator Lerrod was covering the entire screen, causing Vader to clench a fist in annoyance. Even here, he couldn't get away from him.

He was about to switch it off, when the Force sensitive boy was shown in the frame. He turned up the volume, curious.

"..._and in other news, Senator Lerrod officially started his campaign for election this morning with a passionate public speech on the topic of funding for our stretched Family Assistance programs. His predecessor, the late Senator Denna, had attracted criticism for slashing the funding to family related projects by seventy percent."_

"And diverting those funds into his own personal bank accounts," Vader added. Another reason he didn't regret killing him, despite the Emperor's displeasure.

A clip from the speech in question began to play, and Lerrod filled the screen once more.

_"My predecessor neglected the Family Services department to such a degree, its security was compromised and it suffered a violent attack from a deranged criminal. People of Coruscant, I have been serving as your senator for merely a month, and already I have forwarded a twenty thousand credit grant to Family Services for the purpose of upgrading their security. This money was sourced from my own pocket. Why? Because I believe in families ... I believe in supporting _your_ family. Without the tireless work of this wonderful organization so many of our children would still be living on the streets."_

The camera changed to a slightly wider angle, again showing the orphan boy standing beside the senator. He was staring at his feet and appeared to be half covering his face with one hand. Lerrod placed a hand on his shoulder.

_"My family has opened our home and hearts to many of these unfortunate children. I urge all of you, citizens of Coruscant, to give under-privileged children like this one a second chance."_

Vader switched it off in anger. He hadn't seen such hypocrisy since the waning days of the Republic. He knew it shouldn't annoy him as much as it did. It no doubt had the Emperor's full approval. His master enjoyed manipulating the public to make the human face of the Empire seem as saintly as possible. Lerrod certainly knew how to do that - few things would tug at the heartstrings of the populace like an orphaned child. And yet, it made him angry. It was lowly and dishonorable to exploit a child so young for political gain. He knew what it felt like to be exploited when one was only a child ...

Vader stood up, trying to brush the thoughts away. He shouldn't be thinking about this. He shouldn't even remember his childhood - that life was gone. He was a different person now. A person who shouldn't care if a child was being exploited, as long as it served his master's will. A person who was going to kill that same child as soon as Lerrod had finished with him. That was the man he was.

His holocom began to beep, alerting him to an incoming call. A timely and welcomed distraction. It lit up with a blue image of one of his field agents.

"Lord Vader, you asked us to inform you if there was any suspicious activity at Senator Lerrod's home."

"What happened?" Vader asked, picking up the comlink.

"The boy has left the building - he ran past the guards about ten minutes ago. One of them told me he appeared to be injured."

"Injured how?!" Vader demanded.

"He said there was blood on his face. Sir, I just received another report from our agent in charge of the external watch. He claims he saw someone in a black robe crawling up the side of the building."

"I am on my way," Vader said, cutting the call. It appeared the Jedi had decided to make their move.

* * *

Stormtroopers and security guards appeared at every turn, but Luke was fast enough and small enough to dodge them. He'd never been in the streets of this wealthy part of Imperial City before and despite his dire situation, he couldn't help but wonder at how clean it was, compared to the murky dark alleyways surrounding the block where IFS was located.

The abundance of light and lack of alleyways made it harder to find a hiding place, though. Soon, he was lost hopelessly in a network of corridors under the streets, which were teeming with security guards. If their armor wasn't preventing them from running as fast as he could, he would have been captured a long time ago. But his luck didn't hold out forever and after one wrong turn, he found himself being cornered by four stormtroopers.

"Stand still, kid," the nearest one said, brandishing his blaster.

Luke looked left and right, seeing more troopers on each side. There was one behind him too, blocking the way into another corridor with restricted warnings posted on the halls. There was nothing for it, but to let them take him.

"He's hurt," one of them said.

"I can see that."

"Maybe he was attacked."

"Who attacked you, kid?"

Luke didn't answer. He could see someone else, approaching the group. His view was blocked by the stormtroopers, but there was no mistaking that overly thin body, the creeping gait, and the deep crimson laser sword. Was he hallucinating?

"Look out!" the trooper at the rear shouted.

They all turned, raising their rifles towards the black-clad figure. He was real! The murderer of his aunt and uncle, standing less than a speeder's length away from him!

The stormtroopers shot randomly at the figure, pumping hundreds of laser bolts in his direction as if their blasters had unlimited power. The shadowy figure deflected them all into the walls, and some came flying back towards them. Luke remained frozen until a searing pain burned in his leg. He was hit!

Too scared to look and see how bad his wound was, Luke limped towards the now unguarded entrance to the restricted corridor. A blaster bolt hit the wall beside him, flaring up in a shower of sparks, and Luke began to run as fast as his burning leg could carry him.

He kept looking over his shoulder as he ran, half-expecting to see his hunter following him. It was just like his nightmare. No matter how fast he ran, he could feel him getting closer. As the last of his adrenaline began to run out, Luke stumbled with exhaustion.

He grabbed the wall for support and ended up triggering a touch-sensitive button. A small compartment slid open next to him, and he flung himself inside. When the door slid closed again, he was shrouded in pitch darkness, but he didn't care. All he could do now was wait. He couldn't run anymore and he was too injured to fight.

Maybe this was it.

* * *

Vader had scarcely left his quarters when he felt the presence of the Force user arrive in the proximity. Within a minute, his comlink was beeping, and he feared he was already too late.

"Lord Vader!" It was the captain of the corridor guards. The 3D image was small, but Vader could still see he was nervous. "There is an enemy in the protected corridors, sir! He fought his way into the south-west exit and is heading in the northerly direction!"

"I am aware," Vader said. "I am between the south-west exit and the entrance to the palace. He will encounter me before he gets here."

"I have backup emergency teams on their way to all junctions."

"Inform me if you sight him," Vader said. He cut the call, wanting to focus his attention on seeking the intruder's presence in the Force. If this enemy truly was a Jedi, he would easily find a way past the guards.

Vader flattened himself against the wall and edged along, lightsaber held vertical in front of his eyes. He cleared his mind, dismissing all feelings of thrill or anticipation. There was only himself, the Force, and ... the Jedi!

He turned, moving quickly towards the shifting presence. As he passed a junction in the corridor, he caught a flicker of movement in his peripheral vision. The Force guided his reflexes, and he changed direction. But even as he closed on the place where he had seen the image, he knew he was too late. Whoever the Jedi was, he had run for his life.

Vader was fully intending to pursue and chase him to the ends of the galaxy if need be, but a noise made him halt. It came from beside him this time. A shuffling noise. It was coming from inside the wall ...

He ran his black-gloved hand along the surface, searching for a compartment. He must have triggered a switch somewhere because the door to a cupboard shot open with a whoosh, causing him to step back and tilt his lightsaber into the darkness.

The red glow instantly lit up the figure of a child, cringing against the back wall and shielding his face with both arms. It took Vader a moment to recognize him. It was the Force sensitive orphan boy.

Vader glanced up the corridor, everything suddenly falling into place. The Jedi had been chasing after the boy. Now it was a question of whether he should go after the Jedi or stay here. It was possible the Jedi had run in an attempt to lead him away from the boy.

He turned back to the child and found the boy was staring at him in surprise, mixed with a healthy dose of fear. Vader felt equally surprised by his appearance. The boy's face was swollen and bruised. Blood ran from his nose and trailed down his gray shirt, which looked identical to the one Vader had seen him in a week ago. It looked like he'd been wearing it non-stop for the entire week as well.

The child had suffered a beating from someone. But who? If the Jedi were intending to rescue him, they would hardly inflict this damage. Perhaps the boy had resisted his capture.

"What happened to you?" Vader demanded. "Do you know who it was you were hiding from?"

The boy's only response was to try and squash himself behind a cleaning droid. He was staring at the tip of the lightsaber and shaking with terror. Vader looked from the blade to the boy and decided he might make better progress if he switched it off.

"You have nothing to fear," Vader said, holstering his lightsaber. "Come out into the corridor."

He stepped back from the entrance to give the boy room to climb out. After a few seconds, in which no sounds of movement were forthcoming, Vader glanced back in annoyance. Had he just been disobeyed? By a _child_?!

"Hurry up!" Vader ordered.

The boy only cringed at his words, looking not unlike a frightened bantha cub.

Vader looked around, hoping for someone else, _anyone_ else, who would know how to handle this situation. Sith Lords and children did not mix.

The corridors remained deserted and quiet.

Vader looked back at the boy, in two minds about what to do. The Jedi would not return tonight now that he knew the Sith would be waiting for him. A stormtrooper would escort the boy back to the senator's home. He should just walk away.

So why didn't he? Vader continued to stare at the boy, wondering why the child's gaze seemed familiar. Perhaps he had killed the boy's parents at some stage. Or perhaps they had been acquaintances of Anakin Skywalker.

Whatever the reason, it was silly to stand here and dwell on this. His master would order him to walk away. In fact, his master would order him to put the boy permanently out of his misery and walk away.

But the Emperor wasn't here. It was entirely up to him what he chose to do in this situation. Perhaps he should take heed of the old axiom and trust his feelings.

"I am not going to hurt you," Vader tried, attempting to sound less threatening. "Now, come out of there _immediately_." He embedded a healthy dose of Force suggestion into his last command, hoping it would do the trick.

To his surprise, the child simply brushed it off. "You'll t-take me back to the s-senator's home," he sniffed.

Vader sensed genuine fear behind the words. Curious. It suddenly occurred to Vader that the boy may have obtained his injuries from the senator himself. It was difficult to imagine Lerrod being capable of such brutal violence, but appearances could be deceiving. The thought made him feel increasingly angry.

What to do about it was another question entirely.

While he considered the idea, the boy suddenly launched himself out of the cupboard and tried to bolt. Vader reached out to block his path, but it turned out to be unnecessary. As soon as the boy tried to put his weight on his legs, he sunk to his knees and would have collapsed if Vader hadn't caught him.

Now that he could see the boy in the light, his injuries appeared far worse.

"You need medical attention," he said, feeling a wave of concern he couldn't explain. There wasn't time to wonder about his feelings, though - he had to take the child to a medcenter. There would be a private medcenter in the building adjacent to the senate, but that was a long walk, and the child appeared barely able to stand as it was. The last thing he wanted was to be seen carrying a child around.

"Do you think you can walk to the nearest landing pad?" Vader asked. "There, we can take a speeder to the nearest medcenter."

The boy rubbed his head for a moment and then nodded.

"Good." Vader let him go, and the boy began to limp forward, heavily favoring his right leg.

* * *

Obi-Wan was deep in meditation when he felt Tis return. He mentally searched for any sign of Luke, but there was none. Obi-Wan didn't know whether to be relieved or disappointed.

"What happened, Tis?" Isel asked, as the triangular head burst through the surface of the water. He shook himself off and walked forward, casting an angry glance at Obi-Wan.

"I nearly had him. Then Vader showed. How do you like that, Kenobi? Luke has now been captured by Vader, thanks to your efforts to hinder me."

"What did he do with him?" Obi-Wan asked, fearing the worst.

"I don't know. He sensed my presence, and I had to run. The boy is probably dead now, thanks to you."

Obi-Wan stretched out with the Force, seeking confirmation. It was difficult, though. The Force was a swirling mass of many different threads, all of them intertwined. One of them belonged to Luke, but which?

"I don't feel his death," Obi-Wan said, finally.

Isel smiled. "Then we will have another chance!"

"Not if Vader continues to take an interest in the boy," Tis said. "I cannot fight Vader alone."

"What if Obi-Wan were to assist you?" Isel suggested. "One of you could distract Vader while the other one found Luke."

"Excellent idea," Tis said. "But there is one problem." He pointed a clawed appendage in Obi-Wan's direction. "He is too holier-than-thou to assist us."

"Obi-Wan," Isel said, coming and kneeling down next to him. "Surely you can't believe Luke is better off where he is. If the two of you work together, we can get Luke back."

Obi-Wan looked aside, considering it. Working with the Lars' murderer went against every instinct he possessed. But Isel was right - Luke was in grave danger. Getting him away from the Sith was the first priority. After that, he could see about getting him away from Tis.

"Very well," he said. "I will cooperate with your plan."

"I don't trust him," Tis said, turning away. "He'll double-cross me at the first opportunity."

"Then you be the one to retrieve Luke," Isel said, "while Obi-Wan distracts Vader. Fair enough?"

Tis nodded.

"When will we move?" Obi-Wan asked.

"Leave it to me," Tis said. "Reconnaissance is my specialty. Tomorrow, I will return to Coruscant and determine what Vader has done with the boy. You better hope your former apprentice has enough scruples to spare his own flesh and blood, Obi-Wan."

* * *

"Is it true that you command the entire Imperial starfleet?"

Vader looked over at his passenger, wondering what had brought this on. After they'd entered the Imperial-issue speeder, Vader had located an icepack in the medical kit and given it to the boy to hold against his head. It seemed to have made him more impudent, rather than provided any useful medical benefit.

"I have no interest in answering idle questions," Vader said, taking his hand off the steering controls to point at the boy. He didn't notice, though, as he was too busy watching wide-eyed as Vader dodged an oncoming speeder one-handed while not even looking at the traffic.

"Sorry, sir," he mumbled, in an annoyingly endearing way.

Vader spotted the building below, and breathed out with relief. The speeder plunged downwards, accelerating rapidly, until he pulled out at the last minute and brought it down in a gentle landing.

"People tell me I'm too curious," the boy mumbled, rubbing his head. "I can't help it."

"Do they also say that you talk too much?" Vader enquired.

The boy shook his head, but Vader suspected he wasn't being entirely truthful. Unless it was the effect of his presence that caused the boy to babble like this. A situation he very much doubted. The boy took his point, however, and withdrew into a silent state as he climbed out onto the landing pad. He remained that way as they entered the building, a situation for which Vader was grateful.

He studied the building directory on the wall opposite the entrance and ran his finger down the list until he located a medical center.

"Keep moving," Vader said, eyeing the boy's limping gait. "It is only a short distance to the elevator bay."

He nodded but was clearly reaching the end of his endurance. He was a fighter, though, that much was clear to Vader. The boy had refused to rest during the journey to the speeder and struggled on towards the elevator bay without complaint. He had a strong spirit to match his strong presence in the Force.

It was almost a shame he would have to be killed, eventually. He would make a good apprentice. Perhaps the Emperor could be convinced to make other arrangements for the boy. They could detain him until he was an adult and then train him as a field agent.

The boy glanced at him, becoming aware he was being analyzed. Vader quickly focused on the elevator buttons. Floor eighty-one was their destination. He hoped the senator would be already waiting for him. He had ordered a guard to contact Lerrod while the boy had been distracted with the speeder.

Given the boy's condition, he'd also been sorely tempted to contact the media. The public should see the other side to the senator's 'caring for orphans' façade. Using the boy as a tool to satisfy his dislike of Lerrod went against his principles, however. The last thing the boy needed in his condition was to be subjected to journalists.

The medical facility turned out to be unbelievably crowded for this time of night. Someone must have poisoned the food at a senator's planning meeting. He and the boy received plenty of stares from the seated patrons in the waiting area as they walked up to the main reception desk.

"This boy needs medical attention now," Vader said to the silver protocol droid behind the desk.

"Yes, sir," the droid said. It turned its photoreceptors on Luke and tilted its head for a moment.

"I'm sorry, sir," it said, finally. "That boy does not appear in our patient database." The droid produced a form faster than a speeding podracer. "Please fill in these details."

Vader eyed the form, warily. Name, date of birth, place of birth, name of first parent, name of second parent ... as if he would have any idea about any of this!

"I am not filling in any form," Vader said, angrily. "I said the boy needs medical attention _now_."

Said boy was gazing at him with a fearful expression, but Vader didn't care. He wasn't leaving here until the boy was in the hands of a qualified medical practitioner. If he left the boy with this secretary droid, he would likely be dead before the gears of bureaucracy finished grinding.

"We cannot treat a patient without details," the droid said, oblivious to his anger. "May I suggest you try the public hospital five blocks to the north-east?"

Vader was infuriated. For the second time that month, he was tempted to dissect a droid with his lightsaber.

Suddenly, a human doctor came hurrying up, saving the droid from an early death.

"I'm sorry, sir," he said. "You'll have to excuse L-160 here. He is overworked."

"This boy needs medical attention," Vader said, gesturing at the boy, who was looking more pale by the minute.

"Yes, sir. If you'll please come with me ..."

The doctor led the two of them away from the waiting area and into a private surgery. Vader noted the name on the door as they entered - Doctor Leeson. Human doctors on the payroll was a sure sign of a medical facility that catered to the wealthy on Coruscant. The medical droids inside the room were polished up with a gold finish and were undoubtedly the very latest models.

One of them self-started and rolled over to assist the doctor as he helped the boy up to sit on the bed.

"So young man," the doctor said. "Where does it hurt?"

The boy failed to smile at the doctor's poor attempt at humor, and Vader couldn't blame him. The doctor was trying to help him relax, but it seemed to be having the opposite effect. The boy was staring at the medical droid, looking frightened.

"This is my assistant," the doctor explained, patting the droid. "He's going to help me assess your injuries. If you tell him your name, he'll tell you his."

Vader listened curiously, but the boy didn't reply. He was staring at the floor, looking miserable.

"The shy type, huh? Never mind. Perhaps your friend will be able to fill me in."

Vader bristled at being referred to in such a fashion, but he supposed that was what you had to expect when you were in the company of children. Especially difficult children such as this one, who babbled away one minute, then played shy the next.

"This boy is in the care of Senator Lerrod," Vader explained. "He is supposed to be meeting me here to discuss the situation. If you require any information, I suggest you ask him."

"His son?" the doctor enquired.

"No. He is an orphan whom the senator procured to assist with his political campaign. I found him in a restricted corridor in this condition."

The doctor glanced over at the boy, looking concerned. Vader followed his gaze and saw the droid had rolled up the boy's clothing, to reveal a nasty looking blaster graze across his leg.

The boy had been shot?

Vader's wondering ceased when he heard voices outside, and his Force sense recognized the senator. So, he'd finally decided to show his face. This was one conversation he'd been looking forward to. Abruptly, he turned, leaving the doctor alone to work.

Lerrod had come with two aides and a security guard. They hastily backed away when Vader appeared.

"Ah, Lord Vader," Lerrod said, bowing. "I received a message that -"

Vader squeezed his throat slightly, cutting him off. It was so very tempting to squeeze harder, but he knew he had to refrain.

"Your predecessor was the lowliest excuse for a politician I have ever met," he started, remotely pulling Lerrod closer. "But even he was not a child-abusing sadist!"

"Sir, I swear to you - I never touched the boy!"

He was telling the truth. Reluctantly, Vader released his Force grip.

"Then who did?"

"He ran off! Got into a street fight, I suppose. It won't happen again ... I'll keep a better watch on him."

"See that you do," Vader said, ominously.

The senator swallowed. "I'll go in and see how the boy is, if you don't mind, sir."

Vader stepped aside and stared after the senator as he entered the surgery. His work was done here. It was unlikely Lerrod would allow anything to happen to the boy again. He may be a scheming politician, but he had learnt from his predecessor's mistake.

But it still didn't feel right to simply leave the boy in Lerrod's care. Yet it was the logical thing to do. The senator was his guardian, after all, despite the somewhat shady circumstances under which he obtained that right. If the boy was to be used as Jedi bait, the senator's home would be the best place for him. It was far enough away from the palace to let the Jedi think they had a chance.

Besides, what else could he do? Take the boy back to his own dwelling? The thought of having a child in his home was unthinkable.

Finally, Vader turned for the exit.

* * *


	12. A Final Plan

* * *

**Chapter 12: A Final Plan**

* * *

By all reasoning, Vader knew he should have reported his discoveries to the Emperor days ago. The night he had taken the boy to the medcenter had left no doubt in his mind that the Jedi were after the boy. He had promised himself he would tell the Emperor once he was sure. Yet now he _was_ sure, and he still hadn't told him.

His master probably knew anyway. Very little escaped the Emperor's notice. There was little point in bringing it up.

And so, when he met with the Emperor that morning, he avoided the subject of the Jedi and the boy all together. They discussed routine matters of fleet movements and promotions, until Vader found a good moment to make an exit.

The Emperor had other ideas, however.

"There is one last thing I wanted to discuss with you, Lord Vader," he said, leaning back in his throne.

Vader waited, already guessing what this would be about.

"A report reached me concerning you taking an injured child to a medcenter earlier in the week."

"Yes, my master," Vader said.

"Is this something you normally occupy your time with, Lord Vader?"

Vader gazed around the dark recesses of the throne room, wondering how he was going to talk his way out of this one. "No, my master," he said.

"Perhaps there was something more to this boy that the report overlooked," the Emperor suggested.

Vader released a weary breath. This was really just a game the Emperor liked to play. He knew all too well who the boy was. He probably knew a lot more than Vader, but he liked to feign ignorance sometimes. Just to try and keep Vader's guard down.

"He is an orphaned boy in the care of Senator Lerrod," Vader explained. "He is also Force sensitive."

"Really. And you didn't see fit to mention this earlier?"

"He is not a danger to us, master," Vader said, a little more quickly than he'd meant to. He gathered his thoughts, sensing the Emperor wasn't pleased over this. "He is untrained. There is nothing about him to suggest he has had any contact with the Jedi."

"But he is strong in the Force?"

"I believe so."

"Then he must be destroyed. Immediately. You do not see anything suspicious that this boy should surface at the same time as Jedi long thought dead?"

"He could be useful to us, my master." The words had left Vader's mouth before he had a chance to consider them. It seemed as if someone else was talking, through his body. Since when did he become an advocate for this boy?

"How so?"

"If we keep him alive, he may draw out the remaining Jedi," Vader explained. "I will be ready for them."

"Your plan has great risk, Lord Vader. If the Jedi should succeed in taking the boy, the consequences could be dire."

"I will not fail, master."

"See that you don't."

* * *

Luke was miserable. The senator had put locks on the doors after the medcenter incident, and now he was confined to his room, except if the senator required him for something. He couldn't even talk to his friends in the cages next door.

He lay flat on the bed, staring at the stains on the ceiling. If you stared at them long enough they started to look like things. The one in the corner almost looked like a ronto. Luke sighed, desperately missing his aunt and uncle. He felt guilty for every time he had ever complained about being bored on Tatooine. Little did he know then.

Picking up a lightpen, Luke began to resume his latest letter to LJ, Crix and Val.

_After I was shot, Lord Vader took me to a medcenter. Yeah, you read that right, Lord Vader. I still can't believe it myself. He was scary at first, but he wasn't so bad once I gave him a chance. He can fly a speeder like nobody's business._

Luke thought back, remembering. It felt wrong, somehow, that he had ever come to the man's attention in the first place, never mind that he had actually spoken to him. Darth Vader was so important, a lightyear removed from everything Luke had ever known on Tatooine. Vader had probably been to every star system in the galaxy, traveling in gigantic starships that could dwarf entire moons and who knew what else.

_After Lord Vader left, the senator arrived and he acted like he was really concerned about me. Then when we were alone, he started ranting on angrily about how he was going to lose votes. I asked why, and he told me to shut up. We got into an argument then, and I told him I wanted to go back to Family Services. You guys are probably laughing right now, thinking about how much I wanted to leave when I was there. I guess it's the slightly better choice out of two bad ones._

Luke tapped the pen against his head, thinking back.

_When we got home, Chilee told his father that he hadn't touched me, and I must have been hurt in a street fight. The senator believed him and told me to stop lying when I said it wasn't true. Do fathers always believe everything their sons say? Anyway, then he said he was putting locks on all the doors and I wasn't allowed out of my room. So here I am._

_I'm so bored. At least my leg doesn't hurt so much anymore. The medical droid did a really good job of patching it up. I can't wait to show you guys my scar._

A noise at the door caused Luke to drop the datapad. He saw the food slot swing open, but no tray of food was placed inside. He looked out to see what was going on.

It was Chilee. And he was grinning. It was a twisted, corrupted copy of his father's smile.

"Hey Puke! Enjoying yourself?"

Luke didn't reply.

"I guess you must be hungry."

Chilee held up a tray. It held a steaming bantha steak, one of Luke's favorite foods. His mouth watered.

"I don't know if I should give this to you," Chilee continued. "After all, you haven't been very good lately."

Luke felt his anger swelling again. He quickly tried to squash it down, frightened of a repeat of last week's eruption.

"In fact, maybe I should eat this for you."

Chilee pulled up a chair and sat down, with the tray on his lap.

Luke returned to his bed. He tried to think of something other than the smell of the steak. He picked up his model T-16 and flew it back and forth.

When Chilee could no longer see Luke's face, he got bored with the torture. He spat on the remainder of the steak and shoved it through the hole.

"You know, you're lucky you're locked in there," Chilee said. "Because when you come out, I'm going to finish what I started before."

"Looking forward to it!" Luke called, shrugging off his fear.

* * *

"What are you doing?"

Obi-Wan turned at the sound of footsteps. It was one of the young padawans. A Leithian boy, who he'd since learnt was named Keth.

"I'm looking around to see if there's another way out," Obi-Wan said. "Other than the stream exit, which has a security lock."

"There isn't," Keth said. "I've already looked."

Obi-Wan pondered the words, before a startling idea occurred to him.

"You are a prisoner here too?"

Keth nodded. "I wish to return to my clan. I miss being among my brothers and sisters."

"You were not raised in the temple?" Obi-Wan asked, surprised.

"According to Masters Tis and Arperh, not one temple padawan survived. When I hatched, some of our clan leaders contacted the Jedi to have me screened for Force sensitivity. I was just under the minimum level."

"When did Master Tis bring you here?"

"It was Master Arperh who found me, sir," Keth explained. "She was assisting with a plague which had struck our clan ... medical help was in short supply, due to the Clone Wars, but she had obtained special permission from the Jedi Council to assist us. We became friends. After the Empire emerged, she returned to my homeworld and hid among my clan. I have learnt many valuable healing skills from her, which are of great use to my family."

"Master Tis never trained you?" Obi-Wan asked.

Keth shook his head. "He came to Leitha and found Master Isel and me. We have been traveling with him for two years now, but he has never trained me. I feel I could be of more use on my homeworld. He says the Empire will hunt me there, but I'm willing to take my chances."

There was a sudden splash of water beside them, and Obi-Wan jumped back from the stream. Tis had returned from his latest intelligence gathering expedition. Keth hastily ran off towards his private quarters, clearly not wishing to be caught conversing with Obi-Wan.

"Any news?" Obi-Wan asked, as Tis dried himself off.

"The boy is still alive," Tis said. "According to the tabloids, your former padawan even took him to a medcenter."

"Medcenter? Why, what happened to him?"

Tis clicked his claws together a few times, which Obi-Wan supposed was a shrug. "I believe a stormtrooper shot him while I was trying to reach him."

"And you never saw fit to mention this? Where is he now? Is he still in the medcenter?"

"It was only a graze. Now he's back at the senator's home, and Vader appears uninterested. All we need now is a good opportunity to go in and get him out."

Obi-Wan nodded.

* * *

Almost a week had passed since the hospital incident, when Luke was finally given a chance to experience the outside world again. The day also happened to coincide with another special event for Luke - today was his birthday. He was twelve standard years old.

He considered mentioning it to the droids who came to deliver food, in the hope he might get some cake or candy out of them. He doubted they understood the concept of a birthday, though. They were a dull lot, with no discernable personality. Even when they passed on the message that he should get ready to go out, their tone didn't change.

The senator had been invited to a concert at the palace, and, as usual, the media were lined up outside to get a statement from him. Luke found the entire process boring to the point of tears, but he was never given a choice about being paraded in front of their flashes and lenses.

Once inside the palace, Luke was instructed to wait outside the concert hall. The corridor surrounding it was circular and lined with a deep velvet red. Artificial torches rested in brackets, created a flickering illumination effect on all the walls.

Luke found himself an empty alcove and sat down cross-legged to wait. Other guests walked by and didn't even notice him. Not that he minded - it was better than being pointed and glared at.

He was just beginning to start another letter to his friends at Family Services, when the red boots of a royal guard suddenly appeared in front of him. Luke stared at them nervously and then glanced up.

"Are you supposed to be here, young man?" the guard asked.

"Uh ... I'm not ..." Luke stuttered for a moment, before suddenly recognizing the presence of the man in front of him. "Captain Jarnet?"

"Darn it," he said, reaching out a gloved hand to help Luke up off the floor. "Lucky guess. I was thinking I might have you going for a while there."

"It's not a guess," Luke explained. "I'm good at recognizing people. Even when they wear masks."

"You must have a sixth sense," he replied. "My own son can't even tell me apart when I'm in uniform."

He guided Luke out of the alcove and then stepped into it himself, turning so he was facing outwards.

"I guess I'll have to find somewhere else to make myself scarce," Luke said, realizing his alcove was in fact a guard station. "The senator said I have to wait out here until the concert is finished."

"You might find a few empty ones in that direction." He gestured down the corridor with his pike. "Watch out for priceless vases."

"Thanks," Luke said, grinning.

He took the guard's advice and trailed off in search of a new place to work on his letter. He'd barely traveled a quarter-way around the circular corridor, however, when he heard the unmistakable sound of mechanical breathing up ahead.

Luke swallowed. He knew that sound, and the person it was attached to. Darth Vader.

Logic said he should turn around and make a hasty retreat. But something made him hesitate. Vader had quite possibly saved his life the other day. Aunt Beru had always taught him to say thank you, and he wanted to honor her memory, even if it meant voluntarily speaking to someone as frightening as Vader.

Luke crept slowly around the curve of the corridor, reminding himself that if Vader wanted to hurt him, he had already had plenty of opportunities to do so. But despite his attempts to reassure himself, he still drew back when he first caught a glimpse of the black armor.

After taking a moment to catch his breath, he shuffled forward just far enough to observe Vader, without making himself conspicuous. He was standing opposite the main entrance to the concert hall. Just standing. Luke wondered why he didn't go inside. Maybe it wasn't his kind of concert.

Or maybe he couldn't go in because his breathing would disturb the other guests. The thought made Luke feel sorry for him. It must be horrible to have to wear a mask day in, day out and listen to yourself breathe. Maybe that's why he always seemed to be in a bad mood.

Luke finally found the courage to walk forward into the entrance way. Vader gave him a glance and then resumed watching the concert hall doors. Perhaps he was waiting for someone to come out.

"Why are you here?" he asked, sounding disinterested in the answer.

Luke cleared his throat. Despite his best efforts, his voice still sounded shaky. "S-senator Lerrod -" Luke started.

"Where is he?" Vader interrupted.

Luke pointed towards the concert hall doors.

"I see," Vader said. "He left you in the corridor for the duration of the concert?"

Luke nodded, glad Vader was doing the talking for him.

"When he returns, you will pass on this message," Vader continued. "Tell him the hallways of the Imperial Palace are not a dumping ground for publicity stunts you wish to avoid taking responsibility for."

_Pub what_? Luke thought. He'd never been called that before, whatever it was. It didn't sound like a nice message.

"Stay in the corridor," Vader said, waving a finger at Luke.

Luke nodded. He considered adding that he hadn't been intending to go wandering in the palace, but from what he'd experienced of Vader's personality, he'd likely take that as insolence. Perhaps it was better just to say what he'd come to say and then leave Vader alone.

"Sir ... um ...I wanted to say thank you. Thank you for taking me to the hospital. I didn't get a chance to say it the other night and -"

Luke broke off, remembering Vader's earlier remark about talking too much.

Vader suddenly turned, taking a whole lot more interest in him. He was staring at him like he was a specimen in a petri dish.

"Don't insult me with your pitiful gratitude," he said, angrily. "I only assisted you because you are serving a purpose. You are of no interest to me outside that purpose."

"I'm s-sorry," Luke said, backing away. "I didn't mean to insult -"

"And do not speak to me without my prior permission," Vader said, pointing at him again. "You are a child. I am a Sith Lord. You speaking to me goes against the natural order of things."

Luke turned and ran, concluding that he'd long overstayed his welcome.

* * *

As the days had dragged on, Obi-Wan had finally explored every centimeter of the network of caves. It was a fairly simple arrangement, with separate areas assigned for cleaning and laundry and others assigned for sleeping and meditating. The rooms were mostly bare, as dictated by the Jedi rejection of all possessions. There were a few notable exceptions, though. In the room where Tis slept, there was a glowing holo, showing a much younger, happier Tis standing next to his master.

It hurt Obi-Wan's heart to see it. Somewhere, in a hut in the wastelands of Tatooine, there was a similar holo of a reckless young padawan with a wise elder Jedi named Qui-Gon Jinn. There was also one of himself and Anakin, taken well before the clone wars. He doubted he'd ever see those particular holos again. Perhaps they would be found, centuries from now by a Tatooine archaeologist.

"Obi-Wan?"

It was Isel. Obi-Wan quickly left Tis' room and made his way back to the main cave.

"I'm here," Obi-Wan called, seeing Isel was standing by the riverside. He walked up to join her, and then was promptly soaked by the splash of Tis emerging from the water.

"Tis has good news," Isel said, turning to Obi-Wan. "There will be a campaign party at the senator's home to mark his two month anniversary as acting senator. The perfect opportunity to rescue Luke."

"Will Vader be there?"

Tis squeezed the water out of his robe, slowly. He spoke quietly and a little too casually. "Vader has been sent away from Coruscant on urgent business by the Emperor, and he -"

Obi-Wan stepped closer. "Then we should go immediately."

Tis stared at him for a few seconds, looking vaguely condescending. "As I was saying," he said, slowly and deliberately. "Vader has been sent away from Coruscant, and he leaves tomorrow morning. The party is tomorrow evening - that is when we will strike."

"I thought the plan was for Obi-Wan to distract Vader while you rescued Luke," Isel said. "If Vader won't be there, why risk both of you?"

"It will increase my chances of success if Obi-Wan distracts the guards," Tis said, walking away from them. "They have been led to expect a Jedi attack ... rumors have been circulating."

"I will be ready," Obi-Wan said.

"Good." Tis disappeared down a tunnel, and Isel immediately turned to Obi-Wan in concern.

"I think you should let him go alone," she said.

"Never," Obi-Wan said, calmly, as he sat down to meditate.

"I've known him for a long time, Obi-Wan, and I know he is not being entirely truthful about something."

"Most likely," Obi-Wan said.

"Look after yourself," she implored.

"The same to you," Obi-Wan said. "There is something I discovered recently, that I want you to know."

"What?"

"The passcode to the security door," he said. "I left it on a datapad in your quarters."

"If you discovered this, why have you not left?" Isel asked.

"I have come to the conclusion that Luke is safer if I know where Tis is. Once we have left tomorrow, you will be able to take the padawans and return to Keth's clan."

"But what if you are killed and Tis returns with Luke?" Isel asked. "Wouldn't you rather I was here, in that case?"

"That will not happen," Obi-Wan said, with finality. "The Force will not allow it."

* * *


	13. Showdown

* * *

**Chapter 13: Showdown**

* * *

Luke stared at the ceiling, wondering what was going on up there. People had been running around all day, and it wasn't showing any signs of letting up. No droid had arrived to give him any lunch, but after the last time he had been overlooked, Luke had taken the precaution of storing non-perishable food items in case of situations like this. It was strange, that after the senator had urged him to tell the media he was malnourished at Family Services, it turned out to be him who wasn't feeding him properly.

Luke made another attempt to concentrate on writing his latest letter, but it was thwarted yet again. Not from the noise above, this time, but by the sound of his door being unlocked. Luke stood up in surprise. The senator was waiting on the other side.

"Boy? Luke?!"

Luke presented himself, wondering if there was some kind of disaster going on. The senator hadn't come down here since the first day when he'd shown Luke to his room.

"What's going on?" Luke asked.

"We're hosting a big party tonight. I'll need you."

"No way," Luke said, frowning.

"One of my personal aides will come to get you at the right moment," the senator continued, oblivious. "I want you to offer to get some of the more notable guests a drink. Governor Tarkin himself will be in attendance and -" He paused a moment and sniffed the air. Then he screwed up his face in disgust. "For star's sake, boy, have a shower or something! You smell like a garbage scow."

"It's not _me_!" Luke protested. "It's coming from the room where you keep those prisoners!" He pointed, and the senator followed his gesture.

"Ah," he said, understanding. "I really should set those things free, if Chilee isn't going to take care of them. I thought they might teach him some responsibility."

"Give me the key!" Luke said, eagerly. "I'll do it!"

The senator waved a hand in a dismissive gesture. "After the party. I've got more important things to worry about."

The senator wandered off towards the elevator, mumbling a list of things he still had to take care of. Luke watched him, careful not to make a sound. Once he left, Luke grinned wide with relief. The senator had forgotten to lock him back in his room. Even better, everyone would be distracted tonight, and he could escape from here once and for all!

He was about to turn back to his room, when he got another whiff of the stench which had upset the senator. It certainly did seem worse than usual ... maybe he should check on them. He held his nose and pressed the door release.

"Oh no!" Luke gasped.

The Ewok lay on its side, breathing erratically. Flies buzzed around ominously. The wookiee and the green furry thing didn't look much better, the latter having shrunk to a third of its previous side. The Wookiee had grown thin, even his thick coat couldn't hide it. Without Luke to bring them snacks, they had grown decidedly ill.

Luke's own spell as a prisoner had given him a new perspective on their plight. It was time to take action, even if it meant another beating from Chilee. Luke winced at the thought, but if he didn't do something soon, his friends would die.

"Hang on guys. I'll get you out. I promise."

* * *

His spies were all in position. He himself was watching from an ideal location. His senses were fully attuned to everything going on, down in the senator's home. So why did he feel so apprehensive?

Vader reached down to finger his lightsaber, as if checking to make sure it was still there. If his plan worked, he would be using it soon. It had been a while since he'd killed Jedi. But still there remained a possibility, however slight, that he might fail in his mission tonight. The Jedi could find a way past him, take the boy, and -

The thought of it shouldn't distress him as much as it did. There would be other opportunities.

Vader struggled to remain detached for a few moments, before finally leaving the rooftop. If preventing the Jedi from reaching this boy was that important, he should do it from within the building. He would locate the boy and be sure to keep within his vicinity. It shouldn't be too difficult to do so and remain inconspicuous. Lerrod would no doubt have the boy doing PR duty at his self-aggrandizing party.

Vader entered the senator's home through a side entrance guarded by two of his own agents. It was a convenient way of reaching the party without drawing attention to himself and also ensuring the two spies had not observed anything suspicious. They didn't move or give any other sign as he walked past, but by the time he was inside, he knew the men had seen nothing so far. Still, the night was young.

He emerged from the dark corridor onto a balcony floor overlooking the main party. Governor Tarkin stood nearby and turned around as he heard his approach.

"Lord Vader," he said in greeting. "It is a surprise to see you here."

"I am here on the Emperor's business," Vader said, looking over the edge. A sizeable proportion of Coruscant's rich and famous mingled below. "As are you, I presume?"

Tarkin nodded. "I am meeting Governor Nixer in twenty minutes. Otherwise, this is the last place I would set foot. I cannot stand this Lerrod fellow."

Only Tarkin was secure enough in his position to openly say such a thing about a person in the Emperor's favor. Apart from himself, of course.

"Then you may wish to make yourself scarce," Vader said. "I sense he is coming this way."

Tarkin looked around for the object of his displeasure. "Where?"

"Lord Vader! Governor Tarkin!"

Tarkin started slightly and whirled around to find Lerrod had appeared on Vader's left. Vader didn't bother to turn - he was too busy scanning the crowd for any sign of the boy.

"I'm so honored you made it this evening," Lerrod babbled. "You have made this party complete."

Tarkin merely gave a condescending sneer. Lerrod was lucky he could not see Vader's expression.

"Unfortunately, I have to go and meet with my campaign manager," Lerrod said. "But allow me to introduce my son, Chilee Lerrod Jnr." Lerrod pushed the tall, adolescent boy forward. "He's a straight A student and captain of his school nunaball team."

Tarkin favored them with a look of supreme disinterest and then turned and walked away on a direct line for the nearest exit. Lerrod went off in pursuit, leaving Vader with Lerrod's son. The boy looked up at him nervously and began to back away slowly.

Normally, Vader would have ignored the boy and left him to run away in fright. But he needed information. "There is another boy who lives here," Vader said. "Younger than you. Where is he?"

"Um . . . ah . . . on the lowest floor, I think," the boy mumbled, now a good two meters away.

"Will he be attending this party?" Vader demanded.

"I don't kn-know." he stuttered. " I, um, have to go, um, over there now."

The boy ran off, leaving Vader alone. Perhaps now was the time to do a little snooping.

* * *

Luke ran through the corridors of the senator's home, trying to locate something he could use to break the locks on the cells. He'd already picked up several antique-looking vases, but closer expectation had revealed an impact would do more damage to them than the locks. Not that he thought the senator would mind if he broke his works of art. He could probably afford to replace them a thousand times over.

He bumped into one of the senator's assistants, who was looking flustered and nervous and mumbling something about a guestlist. Luke pressed himself against the wall, hoping he wouldn't be noticed.

"Boy!"

Too late.

"Make yourself useful and go to the kitchens. Ask the droids to hurry up with the drinks."

He rushed on, leaving Luke alone.

The kitchens. Of course! Laser cutters, a utensil used for cutting especially tough meat. They could easily slice through those locks.

Luke set off, with new determination.

* * *

The party was clearly well underway by the time Obi-Wan arrived with Tis. He parked his speeder on the roof of a building a block away from the one where the senator's home was located and led Obi-Wan on a dangerous journey leaping from one building to the next. As they landed on the building opposite, Tis crouched down beside a satellite dish.

Obi-Wan was breathing quickly by this stage, and it didn't go past Tis.

"Are you sure you're up to this, old man?"

Obi-Wan ignored him. "Vader is in the building," he stated, calmly. "You lied. Why?"

"Perhaps my intelligence sources were in error," Tis said.

"Perhaps you have a plan you haven't seen fit to enlighten me of?" Obi-Wan said, raising an eyebrow.

Tis made an odd clicking noise and then reached for his lightsaber. "I didn't want to worry Isel. She is fond of you, for some reason. Our original plan holds - you distract Vader, I rescue Luke."

"You make it sound so simple," Obi-Wan said.

"It is simple. Go on over to the roof -" Tis pointed, "and wait for Vader. He will no doubt come as soon as he senses your presence. Meanwhile, I will find the boy and hightail it. As long as you can occupy Vader for at least five minutes, that is. I'm beginning to think you'll go down in two."

"You know very little about being a Jedi," Obi-Wan said. "If you think such childish mockery will affect my judgment."

"I know more about being a Jedi than you ever will," Tis said, anger evident in his voice. "I represent the future of the Jedi, Obi-Wan. You are a relic of the past."

"We're wasting time," Obi-Wan said, simply. He stepped out from behind the satellite and gathered the Force.

* * *

Vader had a firm hold on the boy's Force signature and was following the trail with single-minded purpose, when his mental concentration was shattered by a very familiar presence. _Obi-Wan_.

He made an about-turn and picked up his comlink, already sensing an impending call. It was one of his spies.

"Lord Vader! An intruder has just landed on the roof ... wearing a brown robe ... holding an ignited lightsaber!"

"Don't go near him. Leave him to me," Vader ordered. "I'm already on my way."

* * *

Luke eyed the Wookiee warily as he held up the laser cutters. He looked ravenous. Maybe he wouldn't be too fussy about what he would eat. Perhaps it would be a better idea to start with the fungus-like alien.

He turned on the blade and slashed the lock off with a single gesture. The door swung open immediately, and the green mossy ball came rolling out. Luke smiled as it brushed against his leg, but was then interrupted by a low whimper from the Wookiee.

Bracing himself, he extended his arm as far as it would go and then removed the lock from the Wookiee's cage. Surprisingly, he didn't come out straight away. He was gripping the bars between his and the Ewok's cage, whimpering miserably.

Luke followed his gaze and shuddered. The Ewok was dead. His anger at the sight threatened to overwhelm him, but he knew anger wasn't going to get him or his alien friends out of here. Someone was coming, and he had a feeling he knew who it would be.

"Quick, outside!" He pushed the Wookiee towards the door. The fungus alien trailed behind, leaving a thin coat of slime. Luke tossed the laser cutter away and followed his friends out into the corridor. Down the hall, he could see the elevator lights descend through a sequence of numbers. It was Chilee, somehow he knew. But where could be hide a full-grown wookiee?

"In here," he said, guiding the aliens into his room. He followed them and shut the door.

"Quiet!" he whispered.

"Puke!" came the call, "You'd better not be down here!"

Luke kept silent. He listened as the footsteps came nearer. Chilee took a step towards Luke's room and then hesitated. Luke bent down to watch through the food slot and saw his nemesis turn to enter the cells.

"Now!" Luke yelled, slamming his hand against the door controls, "Run!"

The Wookiee did not need Luke's encouragement. They both clattered down the hallway towards the elevator.

From inside the cells, came an angry roar.

"Puke!!"

"Hurry! In the elevator! Hurry!" Luke yelled.

Chilee came running out of the cells and into the corridor behind them.

As Luke and the Wookiee entered the elevator, Luke glanced behind at the fungus-ball, who was somewhat slower.

"Hurry!" Luke yelled.

For a second, Luke thought they weren't going to make it. Then Chilee fell to the ground, slipping on the trail of slime. The green ball made a squeaky noise Luke could have sworn was a laugh. Luke smiled as the elevator doors closed, shutting Chilee out and taking him and his friends to safety.

* * *

It took Vader a frustratingly long time to find an elevator to take him to the roof and more than once he was tempted to smash a window and hoist himself up using a grappling hook and cable. It was Obi-Wan, however, who had taught him that the least-destructive way was usually the best. How ironic that he should now use his former master's advice to assist in the journey towards his death.

So focused was his mind on that pleasant thought, that he was surprised when something else began to nag. There was a feeling of urgency gnawing at him, and it wasn't related to Obi-Wan. It was centered around ...

The boy! How could he have been so stupid! This could be a Jedi trap to reach the boy, and Obi-Wan was sacrificing himself as bait. Vader reversed the elevator and set it to stop at the lowest floor. That was where Lerrod's son said the boy was most likely to be, so that's where he was going. He could only hope he was not too late ...

* * *

The Wookiee stopped for breath, panting. It was too much for him, in his half-starved state.

"I know you're tired," Luke said, "but the exit is just around the corner, I promise. You've got to make it."

The Wookiee groaned and took another reluctant step forward. Luke looked behind nervously, knowing Chilee couldn't be far behind. If he caught up with them, he'd call security, and his Wookiee friend would likely be shot.

"Please," Luke said. The fungus alien squeaked in agreement.

Suddenly, the Wookiee raised his head, sniffing the air. Luke could smell it too, but he'd been too distracted with his plight to take notice. It was the smell of food.

"Maybe we could stop on the way and I could sneak into the party and -" Luke started.

Too late. The Wookiee took off at a run that would have crushed mountains had they stood in his way. Luke groaned and jogged after him, calling out pointlessly for him to wait. Hopefully he would find his way to the kitchens, or wherever that smell was coming from, and then they could both be on their way.

It wasn't until Luke turned a corner that he realized just where the smell was leading them. Two large doors, guarded on either side. Behind them was the low hum of conversation that could only mean one thing - the party!

"Stop!" Luke yelled.

He didn't. Luke buried his head in his hands as the Wookiee barged through the doors and chaos ensued within. The floor began to shake, and Luke jumped aside to avoid being trampled as a horde of panicking guests barged through the doors screaming something about a monster.

* * *

When the elevator doors slid open, Vader found himself looking at Lerrod's son. His face was flushed red, and his fists were clenched. He didn't react when he saw Vader. He merely jumped into the lift, slamming his fist into the buttons and disappeared from sight.

Vader didn't have time to wonder. He walked down the corridor, curious as to the accommodation the boy had been living in. He could already sense he was not here, and urgency demanded he depart as soon as possible, but he couldn't resist the urge to look around.

Besides, he would have to wait for the elevator to return anyway. In the room to the right, there were empty cages and a terrible smell. A laser cutter lay on the floor. He turned back to the room on the left. This was clearly Luke's room. Bare and dark, it was hardly an acceptable place to keep a child. Then, Vader felt his anger reduce, as he looked on the bed. A toy spaceship. A T-16 model. It was a simple toy, but appeared to have been ... well loved.

A rumbling noise above distracted him, and he looked up, stretching out with the Force. Whatever was happening up there, it sounded like something that required his attention.

* * *

After the noise had finally begun to die down, Luke heard a squeak beside him. He glanced down to see the fungus alien, rolling out from behind him.

"You're lucky you didn't get turned into a pancake," Luke said, picking it up. "I guess it's safe to come out now."

He stepped out into the corridor and found himself face to chest with an enraged Chilee.

"I'm going to _kill_ you!" he yelled, balling his hand into a fist and swinging it wildly. Luke dodged and ran for the ballroom. Chilee was close behind, clearly not worried about the reason for the guests' departure. The only person who remained in the ballroom was the Wookiee - even the guards appeared to have run in terror. Surprising, what a starving Wookiee could do.

Luke didn't have time to dwell on it, though. Chilee picked up an abandoned plate and threw it at him. It smashed into his head, causing him to trip and sprawl forward onto the floor.

"Run!" Luke said, throwing the fungus alien to the Wookiee. "There's an exit through the other doors!! Run!"

The Wookiee paused from devouring an entire roast meat and caught the fungus alien with a single paw. He roared angrily, clearly noticing Chilee. He started towards his former owner with seemingly murderous intent.

Luke couldn't blame him, but he knew he couldn't stand by and let this happen, either. As much as he hated Chilee, this wasn't right. Chilee backed away in terror, grabbing a chair to defend himself.

"Stop!" Luke yelled, shifting so he was between the Wookiee and Chilee. "I freed you. If you honor that, then you have to listen to me."

The Wookiee paused.

"Go!" Luke repeated. "You're free now - don't waste time on him!"

The Wookiee glanced at the doors and then took a step towards Luke. Luke thought he was going to push him aside, but instead he grabbed him in a strong, hairy hug.

"Okay, okay!" Luke said, smiling despite the grave situation.

The Wookiee then ran for the doors. Suddenly aware that he was now alone with Chilee, Luke glanced behind, only to find the chair flying straight at him. He leapt aside, but he wasn't quite fast enough. It knocked him to the ground, twisting his leg which was still healing from the blaster graze.

"You ... little ... piece ... of ... poodoo ..." Chilee yelled, rushing forward to kick him. "You let my pets out! You never should have come here, you filthy little gutter dwelling ..."

Luke tasted blood in his mouth. He desperately tried to hit back, but there was no stopping Chilee this time. He was angrier than Luke had ever seen him, which was saying something.

Luke wondered if he would get out of this one alive.

* * *

Arriving on the floor where the party was, Vader questioned the first guest he saw.

"What happened!?"

Unfortunately, it was a drunk politician.

"Monster!! Really ... big ... monster!! Look out!!"

Vader made a noise of frustration and walked on. It was tempting to choke him, but he didn't have time. Besides, it wasn't the same if they were too drunk to know what was happening.

A guard came rushing down the corridor and came to a halt in front of him.

"Sir! You must leave the building! There's an animal on the loose, and we've had to evacuate."

"I think I can handle an animal," Vader said, not stopping. He had a sense of the boy now, and he was following it.

"Intruder!" the guard yelled, suddenly firing his blaster.

Vader turned in surprise, wondering if the guard was also intoxicated. But no - there was indeed an intruder. A familiar intruder, standing at the other end of the corridor. Too thin and tall for Obi-Wan, though. It seemed there were two Jedi in the building tonight. The new arrival disappeared from sight at the knowledge he had been seen.

Vader started after him, reaching for his lightsaber, but then he paused. He'd already fallen for this trick once tonight. It seemed they would do just about anything to lure him away from the boy.

And speaking of the boy -

Vader winced as he felt a sharp, stinging pain in his head. The boy was hurt! He didn't have time to wonder at why he would feel the boy's pain so keenly. Something was telling him he had to get to his location, and fast.

* * *

Obi-Wan paced up and down in the wind, feeling strangely passive. There had been few times in his life when he felt the presence of the Force as keenly as he did right now. It reminded him of something Qui-Gon used to say to him when he was a young padawan. About feeling the Force not just around you, but within you. Within your very bones.

The door leading into the building hissed open, and Obi-Wan turned, igniting his lightsaber. It wasn't Vader, however.

"What happened?" Obi-Wan asked, lowering the blade.

Tis took a step towards him, looking vaguely menacing. "Vader went for the boy. He knew of our plan."

Obi-Wan frowned in confusion. What would Vader want with Luke? Unless he had somehow discovered the boy was his son ... but even then, why would he care about a family relationship? Such things had no use to the Dark Side of the Force.

"There might still be a chance if we take him together," Obi-Wan said, finally, "We could -"

"No," Tis said.

"Why not?"

Tis ignited his lightsaber.

"If I can't kill his son ... at least I can deprive him of killing his former master!"

* * *

Upon entering the ballroom, Vader found himself treading on several glass shards. He took in the appearance of the room in one quick glance - tables were overturned, food smeared on the walls, and furniture lay in disarray. A far cry from the room he had viewed from the balcony a short time earlier. It seemed the stories of an animal on the loose were not without merit.

A shout alerted him to the location of the boy, and he stepped around an overturned table. Lerrod's son was beating the boy with an unrestrained fury that would have been enough to cause an earthquake had he been a Sith. It appeared he was so intent on damaging the younger boy, he hadn't even noticed Vader's entrance.

Vader chopped his way through several discarded chairs with his lightsaber and then grabbed the older boy's arm, just as he raised his fist to strike again. The boy twisted around and looked up in terror. And kept looking up.

He stammered something incoherent, and Vader pushed him aside, angrily. So, this was the answer to why the boy had been so frightened at the thought of living here. Lerrod's son had been responsible.

Chilee took the moment to make a quick escape, which was very wise in Vader's opinion. He crouched down beside the boy, assessing his injuries. His face was swollen and bleeding, and he wasn't focusing properly. It was likely he was concussed. Vader holstered his lightsaber and then helped the boy to his feet.

"I'm fine!" the boy declared, before stumbling forward. Vader caught him before he hit the floor, and he made a noise of resigned frustration.

"Why is it," he enquired, "that wherever you are, trouble seems to follow?"

The boy didn't reply. Vader studied him, wondering what to do now. Perhaps he should take him back to that doctor at the private medcenter. He couldn't trust Lerrod to look after the boy properly. The man was probably off giving interviews for the HoloNet news channels. He wouldn't be surprised if he'd let an animal in on purpose, just to get some attention.

"Come on, I will take you to -" Vader started. He broke off, sensing a disturbance in the Force. Obi-Wan! He had almost forgotten about him. This boy was truly going to be the end of him if he wasn't careful. And now there was the question of what he would do with him while he dealt with his former master. Leaving him here was out of the question - one of the Jedi could double back. He would have to take the boy with him.

Vader bent down to pick him up, trying not to think too much about what he was doing. It was necessary, as the boy couldn't walk on his own, and he had to reach Obi-Wan. The boy didn't protest, although he seemed to be partially unconscious.

They soon reached the elevator bay, at the far end of the room, and Vader set the boy down while he pressed the button for the top floor. The elevator began to creak into action, causing Vader to bang the wall in frustration, idly hoping it would be intimidated into moving faster. The boy was injured; he needed medical attention now, and the longer he delayed, the greater the chance that Obi-Wan would again allude his grasp.

"Thank you."

Vader looked down, surprised the boy was still talking. "What?"

"Thank you. For saving me."

Vader was about to protest that he hadn't 'saved' anyone, and he was only assisting the boy because of the Jedi. But the words sounded hollow, even in his mind. He couldn't deny it any longer. There was a connection between him and the boy ... a connection that kept throwing them together. He would have to investigate this properly once he had dealt with the Jedi and the boy was healthy.

Nothing more was said until the elevator reached the top floor. Vader again picked the boy up and stepped into the corridor. Ahead was a stairwell, leading up to the roof. And he could sense two distinct people now. Both Jedi were up here. That made things a whole lot easier.

"Wait here," Vader said, setting the boy down at the top of the stair well. "I will come back for you once I have dealt with these Jedi."

As he opened the door, a rush of wind met him, nearly pushing him back inside. His cape whipped around him, and he steadied himself against the small rectangular doorway. As if from far away, the sounds of lightsaber blades clashing reached him, and he turned to see Obi-Wan struggling against the other Jedi.

He didn't waste time on wondering why they were fighting, or who the second Jedi was. If he didn't do something quickly, Obi-Wan would be dead, and his desire for revenge would go unsatisfied for all eternity. His red blade ignited in front of his mask, and he crossed the distance of the small, square roof.

The unknown Jedi snarled at the sight of him and wildly tossed an abandoned crate in his direction. Vader sent it spinning back twice as fast, hoping to intimidate this Jedi into fleeing. He could hunt him down any time, but an opportunity to kill Obi-Wan was rare.

The Jedi somersaulted backwards, resulting in the crate flying past him and tumbling over the edge. There was no safety barrier in sight.

The Jedi regained his balance and immediately charged at Obi-Wan. Vader rushed forward to intercept. Obi-Wan appeared weakened, it was unlikely he would survive another assault from this younger, quicker Jedi.

Vader attacked the Jedi from behind, causing his opponent to forgo his assault on Obi-Wan in order to deflect it. Obi-Wan came in strongly from the other side, and suddenly a temporary alliance had been formed. Vader couldn't help but recall the many times they had fought in this fashion as Master and Padawan.

The Jedi jumped to avoid a low-angled attack from Vader. Obi-Wan swung high, in perfect symmetry to Vader. The Jedi twisted awkwardly and then lunged wildly at Obi-Wan, forcing him backwards. Vader came in behind him, raising his lightsaber to deliver the final blow.

But too soon his opponent realized he was boxed in, and he flipped sideways and disappeared in a blur of Force-enhanced speed.

"Jedi coward!" Vader called after him, feeling his anger bubbling up out of pure frustration.

"He's no Jedi," Obi-Wan said, letting his blade drop. "He's -"

"You are foolish to lower your weapon, Obi-Wan," Vader interrupted, taking an angry swing at his former master.

"Luke!" Obi-Wan yelled, barely blocking the attack. "He's gone after Luke!"

"That name means nothing to me," Vader said, taking another swing. It wouldn't take long to finish the old man now.

"The boy!"

Vader hesitated. He met Obi-Wan's gaze across their blades and sensed something was going on here that went far beyond their personal disagreement. Vader growled in frustration and broke off the attack. In a second, he was over by the door to the stairwell, and he looked through the glass to see the boy still sitting safe on the other side. Perhaps the Jedi was hanging from the side of the building, on the far side of the roof.

He walked over cautiously, aware of the potential for attack at any moment. His opponent was foolish if he thought he could surprise a Dark Lord of the Sith. He glanced over the edge, seeing only the clogged traffic lanes, a long way below. It would be a long, long fall before reaching even the uppermost streets.

The sound of clashing lightsaber blades suddenly broke the silence.

"No!"

Vader returned to the spot he'd last seen Obi-Wan, only to witness the unknown Jedi kicking Obi-Wan in the chest. His former master tumbled over the edge.

"You will pay for that, Jedi," Vader said, taking an angry swing at his opponent. It would have cleaved him in two, if he hadn't leapt into the air and flipped over his head. Vader turned around and came in fast. He attacked over and over, forcing the Jedi back with the sheer power behind every swing. As the opposite edge of the roof loomed into view beyond, Vader hooked the lightsaber out of the Jedi's hand and sent it flying over the edge.

The Jedi fell to his knees, and Vader brought his blade to his throat. Before killing this vile being, he needed some answers.

"Who is the boy, and what is his significance to you?"

"You mean the legendary Anakin Skywalker hasn't figured that out?" the Jedi rasped, struggling for breath. "I thought you were the _chosen_ one!"

Vader angrily grabbed the Jedi by the neck and lifted him over the edge. His captive clawed at Vader's gloves, struggling to breathe, but to no avail.

"I am _Darth Vader_," Vader stated, "Your puny defenses are nothing to the power of the Dark Side."

To demonstrate, Vader mentally invaded his mind, crushing his shields easily. He sensed much hatred, much anger. Images of the Jedi's recent victims bubbled to the surface ... he was shocked to recognize a middle-aged Owen and Beru Lars. It seemed this creature hated him so much, he had even sought out his extended family to exact revenge.

He searched deeper, seeking any information on the boy. There was nothing but an obsession for killing the child and endless visions of Vader looking on while it happened.

Did this Jedi really imagine he would care if he killed a child in his presence? This Jedi was clearly deranged. Vader lapsed his mental probe, and his prisoner began to laugh.

"I may not be able to kill the boy," he said, "But I killed your master, Anakin. You'll never get the satisfaction of revenge. How does that feel?"

Vader gripped the Jedi's throat tighter, preventing him from spewing forth any more annoying last words. "In the name of the Emperor," Vader said, "All Jedi must die."

They stared, face to mask, for a few seconds. Then Vader, almost lazily, released him. He turned around, brushing off his hands ... and met the gaze of the boy, who had just crawled out onto the roof. Of all the disobedient ... as if his constant tendency to get himself into trouble wasn't enough, it also appeared this boy couldn't obey a simple instruction to save his life.

A groan reached Vader's ears, and he quickly walked past the boy to the other side of the roof. Just as he suspected, Obi-Wan was hanging by one hand and one foot, a meter below the edge.

Obi-Wan looked up, and Vader looked down. He should finish this right now and see about getting that boy some medical attention. But he didn't want to let Obi-Wan's life end so easily. The only way it would be fitting for this Jedi to die would be by his blade.

He bent down and offered Obi-Wan his hand. Surprise flashed across the old man's face, but he took the offered assistance and crawled back to safety.

"You should have remained hiding in the outer rim, old man." Vader said. "Being here is the last mistake you'll ever make."

Obi-Wan gave a small, wise smile, perhaps agreeing with Vader, or perhaps just being smug.

He suddenly jumped to his feet and broke into a run. Vader ignited his saber, thinking he was attacking. But Vader was not his target.

Vader whirled around in time to see the other Jedi had somehow managed to survive being dropped over the edge. There was no time to berate himself for his stupid oversight - the overgrown insect was heading for the boy.

* * *

Perhaps there is still good in him. That was Obi-Wan's thought as Vader pulled him back to safety. He barely had time to consider this, before a flash of movement appeared over the far side of the roof.

He jumped to his feet, running to Luke's aid. However, it was clear Tis would reach the boy first. He hurled his lightsaber in desperation, but Tis shifted aside and ended up catching it by the handle. Tis then raised the blade, aiming for the boy.

Obi-Wan could only see one solution. He knew this action would be his last. He knew he would be leaving Luke alone with Vader. But at that moment, it didn't seem like a bad idea at all.

He jumped into the path of the blade.

* * *

Vader watched Obi-Wan's sacrifice in disbelief. His former mentor really had lost his mind. The other Jedi stared at Obi-Wan, distracted and obviously surprised. It was all the opportunity Vader needed. He stepped behind the creature and plunged his lightsaber through his upper body.

The corpse slumped to the ground, and Vader kicked it over the edge. He then turned his attention to Obi-Wan. The old man's wound was mortal. He was still breathing, though, hanging on to the last few moments of life. There was still time, if Vader wished to be the one to kill him himself. But before that, he needed answers.

Vader glanced at the boy and saw he was unconscious. Probably just as well - all this violence was no sight for a child to witness. He crouched down beside Obi-Wan and met his gaze.

"You died to save him," Vader said. "Why?"

"Look ... at ... him," Obi-Wan gasped, weakly. "Look ..."

Vader did so. He couldn't see anything remarkable about the child. Apart from his Force sensitivity, but that wasn't immediately visible.

"Anakin ..." Obi-Wan said, attracting Vader's gaze back.

Obi-Wan's eyes became blank and unfocused. Vader thought he was gone, until he managed one last shallow breath. He choked out words that shocked Vader to the very core.

"He is your son."

Then, Obi-Wan's body faded into the Force.

* * *

_Continued in Force Bond 2: Threat_


End file.
